The Federation Council proposed introducing criminal liability for inducing abortions

Senator Olga Kovitidi proposed introducing criminal liability for inducing abortion. The senator believes that large families should become “the norm of social life” in Russia, but for this “women must want to have children.”

“Deliberate actions aimed at forcing a pregnant woman to have an artificial termination of pregnancy through persuasion, offers, bribery, deception, or other demands must be punished,” said Olga Kovitidi “RIA News”.

According to the senator, administrative liability for inducing abortion is not enough due to the “logical consistency and systemic nature” of such a phenomenon. She proposed supplementing Article 123 of the Criminal Code on liability for “illegal abortion” with paragraph 4, including punishment for “inducing or coercing a woman to have an abortion.”

At the same time, according to Ms. Kovitidi, medical indications for termination of pregnancy should be clearly regulated “in order to preserve the life and health of the woman.” She proposed transferring pregnant students to free education so that they would not have an abortion in order to continue their studies.

This fall, administrative punishment for “inducing” abortions introduced in Mordovia and Tver region. A similar initiative has already been submitted to the Duma of the Tambov region.

The restriction of abortion in Russia is actively supported by the Russian Orthodox Church. Last week Patriarch Kirill called pass a federal law banning “abortion solicitation.” The patriarch explained his proposal by saying that doctors, in his words, “sometimes, for various reasons, including commercial ones, persuade a woman to have an abortion.” At the same time, according to Kommersant, the number of regions in Russia where private clinics refuse to perform abortions is increasing.

More details in the material “Not everyone is an abortionist”.

Anastasia Larina