[ti:US Abortion Case Raises Questions about Other Countries] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]An abortion case now being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court [00:05.76]raises questions about how it could influence other countries. [00:11.12]On Monday an early version, or draft, [00:14.76]of a Supreme Court opinion was released without permission. [00:19.08]The opinion suggested that the high court could overturn the legal case [00:24.92]from 1973 that legalized abortion across the country. [00:31.24]It is not clear what the effects of the decision could be outside the U.S. [00:37.56]But courts in many parts of the world have been legalizing abortion. [00:43.80]For example, in February, Colombia's Constitutional Court [00:48.60]legalized the operation until the 24th week of pregnancy. [00:54.56]Women's activists around the world say they are very concerned [00:59.60]with the U.S. Supreme Court's draft ruling. [01:03.00]They say it shows how their gains can be taken back. [01:08.72]"It is an awful precedent for the coming years [01:12.00]for the region and the world," [01:14.16]said Colombian Catalina Martínez Coral. [01:18.08]She is with the Center for Reproductive Rights based in New York City. [01:24.56]Her group was among the parties [01:26.56]that brought the abortion case to Colombia's high court. [01:31.72]The ruling in February permitted women [01:34.76]to have abortions within the 24-week period. [01:38.52]Before the case, Colombian women [01:41.68]could only legally get an abortion in certain cases. [01:46.32]These included if a fetus presented malformations [01:50.80]or if a pregnancy resulted from rape. [01:54.88]Abortion is still permitted after that period in special cases. [02:00.92]The decision fell short of advocates' hopes for a complete decriminalization. [02:07.64]But Martínez Coral said it still left Colombia [02:11.76]with the "most progressive legal framework in Latin America." [02:17.32]Last year, Mexico's high court [02:20.44]ruled that it was unconstitutional to punish abortion. [02:25.40]The ruling bars charging a woman [02:28.00]with a crime for ending a pregnancy. [02:32.44]In Argentina, lawmakers in late 2020 [02:36.28]passed a bill legalizing abortion until the 14th week. [02:41.04]Abortions are legal after that for certain cases. [02:46.40]Abortion is also widely available in Cuba and Uruguay. [02:52.80]But expansion of abortion has not extended to all of Latin America. [02:58.36]In Brazil, abortion is only permissible in cases of rape, [03:03.56]risk to the woman's life and proven cases of a kind of birth defect. [03:10.80]Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador have total bans with no exceptions. [03:16.88]Many African nations also maintain complete bans. [03:21.56]But in October 2021, [03:24.12]Benin legalized abortion in most cases for up to 12 weeks. [03:29.32]Before it was legalized, 200 women were dying each year [03:34.40]of complications from secret abortions. [03:38.68]Most European countries have legalized abortion. [03:42.60]Ireland legalized abortion in 2018. [03:46.24]So did the small country of San Marino. [03:49.76]Abortion remains illegal in Andorra, Malta and Vatican City. [03:55.76]Poland last year tightened its abortion laws. [04:01.04]Laws are different across the Muslim world. [04:04.32]Abortion has been legal up to 12 weeks in Tunisia for many years. [04:10.16]But in Iran it has been banned since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. [04:17.04]Last year, one of Islam's top religious leaders in Cairo [04:21.72]said abortion is not the answer even in cases [04:25.64]where a child is likely to be seriously ill or disabled. [04:31.20]Agnes Callamard is the secretary-general [04:34.28]of the human rights group Amnesty International. [04:37.64]She said in a statement: "there are grim signs that the United States [04:43.24]is out of step with the progress that the rest of the world is making [04:48.16]in protecting sexual and reproductive rights." [04:53.04]The U.S. Supreme Court's final decision [04:56.08]is expected to come in late June or July. [05:01.56]I'm Dan Novak. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM