Opposition Grows Against Far-Right Bill Accused of Turning Access to Legal Abortion into ‘Act of Torture’

Original article: “No vamos a dar ni un paso atrás”: buscan frenar proyecto de ultraderecha acusado de convertir el acceso al aborto legal en un “acto de tortura”

«We will not take a step back,» asserted Constanza Schönhaut, a deputy from the Broad Front (FA) and a member of the Women’s Committee, as she announced efforts to halt the «Listen to Your Heart» bill, pushed by far-right lawmakers, which has sparked widespread criticism and is accused of turning access to legal abortion into an «act of torture».

The proposed law requires doctors to offer women the option to listen to the heartbeat of the embryo or fetus before performing an abortion under three legal circumstances, and stipulates that the practitioner must refuse to carry out the procedure if the patient declines this condition.

Introduced in mid-June by deputies Cristóbal Urruticoechea (Libertarian National Party), Chiara Barchiesi (Republican Party), Catalina del Real (Republican Party), Álvaro Jofré (Libertarian National Party), Ximena Ossandón (National Renewal), and Claudia Reyes (Republican Party), the initiative seeks to amend Article 119 of the Health Code, specifically regarding the informed consent process that doctors must follow before performing an abortion and establishes that the physician is obligated to inform the woman of the cardiac activity of the embryo or fetus, and must offer «verbally and directly» the option to listen to the heartbeat using electronic instruments, along with an objective description of it.

According to the text, the existence of cardiac activity constitutes «an objective and verifiable clinical data» which «strengthens the quality of informed consent given by the woman requesting the abortion».

Critics Warn the Far-Right Proposal is «Cruel, Unjust, and Inhumane«

In light of this situation, Deputy Schönhaut cautioned that this proposal is «cruel, unjust, and inhumane» and posed the question, «how long will political sectors use our bodies, our lives, and our decisions to impose their beliefs on us once again?».

She reported that the Women’s Committee will require the unanimous support of the female deputies to request that this project, which is being processed in the Health Committee, also be reviewed by the Women’s Committee.

«We will not take a step back,» she emphasized in comments reported by CNN Chile.

Feminist organizations and health specialists have also expressed their opposition, rejecting the bill introduced by deputies from the Republican, Libertarian National Party, and National Renewal parties, stating that conditioning abortion to listen to the heartbeat of the embryo or fetus is an «act of torture».

Lawyer and Deputy Director of Programs at the Miles Foundation, Luz Reidel, accused the bill of failing to provide «objective information», but instead imposing pressure and obstetric-gynecological violence against women and girls accessing the three circumstances law.

«I would first distinguish between the declared objective and the real objective hidden beneath the lines (…) that facade fell away quickly,” she warned after some of the bill’s proponents admitted it aims to oppose the three circumstances abortion law.

In an interview with Ciudadano ADN, the lawyer asserted that this far-right initiative signifies a regression in rights.

«We’re not talking in the abstract. We’re talking about the lives of women and girls,» she stated, recalling that during the years of applying the current regulations, «15 girls aged 11 have interrupted pregnancies due to rape,” she stressed.

Reidel also addressed one of the most controversial aspects of the bill, which states that if the woman declines to listen to the heartbeat, the doctor must also refuse to perform the abortion, labeling it as «a measure of pressure, manipulation, and ultimately, gynecological violence from the State as well».

Proposal Described as «Tremendously Dangerous» that Violates Women’s Rights

In the same vein, the Director of the Obstetrics School at Diego Portales University and a board member of the Miles Foundation, Marcela Fuentes, characterized the initiative as «tremendously dangerous».

For the specialist, «the heartbeat has a significant symbolism«, which led her to suggest that forcing a woman or adolescent to listen to that sound as a condition for obtaining a legal abortion «is a way to impede real access and to violate women».

«We are going to expose a minor to an act of this magnitude (…) We are facing an act of torture,” she warned in statements to ADN.

She criticized the use of Chile’s declining birth rate as an argument to promote the project, stating, «We’re using a rather capricious, harsh, and damaging approach for women», she noted.