A historic turning point for the European microstate with a strong Catholic tradition.

At the end of a referendum this Sunday, the Republic of San Marino, a tiny mountainous enclave in the center of Italian territory, legalized abortion.

This state was one of the last in Europe, along with Malta, Andorra and the Vatican, to completely prohibit voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion), even in cases of rape, incest, fetal disease or danger to the mother.

In this referendum organized at the initiative of the Union of San Marino Women (UDS), 77.3% of voters said "yes" to the option of giving women the free choice to have recourse to the Abortion up to twelve weeks of pregnancy, depending on the final results.

After this period, abortion would only be authorized in the event of a threat to the life of the mother or when anomalies or malformations detected in the fetus "entail a serious risk for the physical or mental health of the woman".

A felony punishable by three years in prison

“It is the victory of all the women of San Marino, over the conservatives and reactionaries who believe that women have no rights! », Jubilated Karen Pruccoli, president of the UDS. And "it is a victory over the Catholic Church, which was our adversary, and has tried everything to prevent this result", she declared. "We respect democracy, we take note of this result, but abortion must really remain the last option", reacted Antonella Mularoni, of the committee against the legalization of abortion, acknowledging the defeat of her camp.

Currently, abortion is a crime punishable by a prison sentence of up to three years for the woman and six years for the doctor who performs it.

But, in fact, there have never been any convictions because the San Marino women go to Italy to have an abortion, thus circumventing the law.

Resistance to the legalization of abortion was strong, starting with that of the ruling Christian Democratic Party (PDCS), which had called for voting "no" to "defend the right to life".

Many believers in favor of free choice

If the voting instructions of the PDCS, which has just over a third of the seats of deputies in Parliament, were clear, this social issue transcends traditional political divisions, because many believers were in favor of free choice. "It is a defeat for this country which has always defended life", reacted to the deputy secretary of the PDCS, Manuel Ciavatta. But "we will respect the voice of the voters" and "the government will present a bill within six months" which will then be submitted to Parliament, he assured. "Our party will do everything to help pregnant women to ensure that they are not left alone," he added.

The victory of the "yes" constitutes a radical change for San Marino, because the ban on abortion dates from 1865 and was confirmed under the fascist regime (1923 to 1943) and by the Penal Code of 1974. To believe some the figures of the Institute of Statistics of Italy (Istat), cited by the committee opposed to abortion, the use of San Marino women to abortion was however rather limited.

Between 2005 and 2019, around twenty of them practiced it each year in Italy and the trend decreased significantly in 2018 (12) and 2019 (September).

People

Uma Thurman opposes Texas anti-abortion law by disclosing abortion

Health

Contraception: Free access for those under 25 "does not mask the shortcomings in terms of sex education"

  • Law

  • Womens rights

  • Europe

  • Italy

  • Abortion

  • Women

  • Ivg

  • Society