Etiquettes : Morocco, abortion, abortion pills,
Distraught at the thought of having another child, Asmaa explored all avenues to have an abortion. But in Morocco abortion is illegal and taboo, and she ended up seeking help on social networks, where trafficking in abortion pills is rife.
With messages such as « Affordable prices », « European merchandise, guaranteed effectiveness », « Shameful pregnancy, correct your mistake », anonymous users on Facebook propose pills containing misoprostol, a substance that causes uterine contractions and the expulsion of the embryo.
These drugs, Artotec and Cytotec, used to treat rheumatism and ulcers, were withdrawn from sale in Morocco in 2018 – as in France – due to their use without medical monitoring for voluntary terminations of pregnancy (IVE).
Moroccan law only authorizes abortion in cases of danger to the woman’s health. If this is not the case, you face between six months and two years in prison for an IVE.
The person who helps you can be sentenced to between one and five years in prison, and up to double that if the patient dies.
Despite the ban, abortion pills continue to circulate in Morocco, where they are imported or stolen from hospitals and then sold for up to ten times their original price in countries where they are sold without a prescription.
In April, three people, including a nurse, were arrested in Kenitra, north of Rabat, for alleged drug trafficking and illegal abortion, according to local media.
According to the Moroccan Association to Fight Clandestine Abortion (Amlac), between 600 and 800 IVEs would be carried out clandestinely every day.
Asmaa, a 37-year-old engineer, was advised to search Facebook, where, according to her gynecologist, other women found pills.
« I was a little suspicious, » Asmaa, who preferred not to reveal her last name given the sensitivity of the matter, told AFP.
« There are a lot of scams, no medical follow-up, and you don’t know what to do, » he added.
– Jail –
On the Facebook shopping page, Marketplace, sellers ask between 1,500 and 2,000 dirhams (between about 150 and 200 dollars) per blister of tablets, without specifying the doses or asking about the number of weeks of pregnancy.
Once the order is placed, delivery is made by hand or by post after paying an advance, with no guarantee of whether the correct medication will be received.
« I felt like they weren’t sure what they were saying, » said Imane, a 29-year-old housewife, who decided not to reveal her last name.
The young woman, prudent, preferred to go to her gynecologist who referred her to a doctor who performs surgical abortion for 20,000 dirhams (about $2,000) and to a midwife who sells pills for 5,000 dirhams (about $500), a fortune for this resident of White House.
Like Asmaa, she finally decided to turn to the Alternative Movement for Individual Freedoms, which supplies abortion pills free of charge, obtained abroad.
« The women who contact us are from all social classes, all ages, all nationalities, » stressed its coordinator, Ibtissame Betty Lachgar, clinical psychologist.
Lachgar explains the dosage to the patient and remains available after taking the medication.
Since 2012, it has helped between 1,500 and 2,000 women and receives requests daily, she said.
« I am willing to go to jail for my ideas and my actions, because I act for the rights of women against their oppression by the patriarchal system, » said this psychologist, formed by the Dutch organization « Women on waves », which sends pills abortions around the world.
– « Why do you decide for me » –
Last week, the NGO Amnesty International called for the decriminalization of abortion, believing that « the Moroccan State is failing to fulfill its obligations. »
« No State should dictate pregnancy decisions and deprive women of essential sexual and reproductive health services to which they are entitled under international law, » the organization said.
Contacted by AFP, the authorities did not comment at the moment, nor did they indicate how the trafficking of abortion pills on the internet is monitored.
In 2016, a bill to allow abortion in cases of rape or incest was blocked due to controversy.
« Society is very conservative, there is a return of religion and a lack of political will, » said the president of Amlac, gynecologist Chafik Chraibi.
Asmaa traveled 700 km, round trip, to get the pills, since she does not feel « neither physically nor mentally prepared to have a second child. »
« And I don’t understand why he decides for me, » he concluded.
Source : MSN
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