The Delhi High Court in India will allow a teenager who was raped to undergo an abortion even though her child is 28 weeks gestation (seven months) and would be likely to survive outside the womb if delivered prematurely at this point.
According to Mirror Now, the girl was given an exception to the law in India protecting preborn children from abortion after 24 weeks of pregnancy. The request for the 16-year-old girl was supported by an affidavit filed by her 28-year-old brother.
Part of the ruling was based on recommendations from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) board, which said that continuing the pregnancy would be “a grave risk to the life of the pregnant woman and to the unborn child who could suffer serious physical or mental abnormality.” The court also said having the child would cause the teenage girl to suffer more emotional scars, on top of surviving rape.
Finally, the body of the preborn child was ordered to be preserved so authorities could test it for DNA comparisons.
After 24 weeks gestation, a woman must get approval from a judge to get an abortion, though exceptions are not always difficult to obtain — especially if the child has a disability. And at 28 weeks gestation, a preborn baby is capable of surviving outside the womb.
It’s a common refrain from abortion supporters that rape victims need to kill their preborn children, yet many women have stated that their abortions added trauma to the trauma of rape. Ashley Sigrest, a survivor of rape, said in a Live Action Pro-Life Replies video that “the abortion just makes the rape 1,000 times worse. Because now you have these two horrible events that you have to deal with.”
Meanwhile, Stephanie Reynolds, who was conceived in rape, said her life is worth just as much as any other person’s, regardless of the consequences of her conception — and it doesn’t make anything better. “Abortion does not erase the rape or undo the violence that the woman has suffered,” she said. “As many rape survivors have poignantly testified, abortion is actually an obstacle to healing after rape. Abortion adds trauma to trauma, and it creates yet another innocent victim.”
Author’s Note: If you have become pregnant through sexual assault, you can contact Choices4Life for help.
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