To Abort Or Not To: Which Way For The Moral Compass?

By Martha Etale

Abortion is the termination of a pregnacy. The process can happen willingly or unwillingly. An expectant mother can have complications in which a doctor would advise for an abortion to take place. 

But is abortion legal in Kenya? What does the Constitution of Kenya say about abortion? Chapter four of the Constitution states that “Abortion is not permitted unless, in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law.”

Termination of pregnancy illegally has become a social practice in Kenya in which mostly young mothers who are victims of early pregnancy decide to terminate it before birth due to circumstances like fear, the shame of becoming young mothers, dreams getting shattered since maybe they were still schooling.

Since abortion in the country is illegal persons secretly tend to conduct the process by themselves lacking the necessary skills some use drugs, quack doctors, knitting needles, pesticides, small bottles filled with improvised explosive inserted into the uterus in most cases causes long term complications to the victim’s body in which most cases the uterus is damaged hence the victim can’t conceive again or sometimes death.

The most recent data available states that in 2012 almost half a million abortions were conducted with one in four resulting in health complications according to health ministry data.

READ: Kenya Loses At Least 362 Women For Every 100,000 Live Births

A Kenya CRR report estimated that 2600 girls and women die every year accounting for seven deaths per day due to unsafe abortions.

“Ten years since the promulgation of the constitution we are still losing the lives of women and girls in great numbers, these deaths are preventable but unfortunately little has been done. .” Martha Karua.

Massive training is necessary for young girls and women to practice safe sex to reduce the unwanted pregnancies that desperately lead to unsafe abortion which is termed as cheaper, but in the end turns to be expensive, costing lives and long-term complications, so sad.