Thousands of Spaniards up and about to protest abortion
Demonstration against abortion in Madrid. The banner reads: "Our lives are at stake, no more laws against the truth and human nature". Photo AFP, Javier Soriano
Southern Europe
More than 100,00 people went to the streets in Madrid at the beginning of this week. They were up and about to protest abortion. "Life is at stake. No more laws against the truth and human nature", was their slogan.
About 200 organisations joined the abortion demonstration, Die Tagespost reports. Furthermore, several prominent people spoke at the event.
One of them is the former Interior Minister of Spain, who is now a member of Parliament: Jaime Mayor Oreja. On behalf of NEOS, a pro-life organisation, he argued that the debate about "the culture of life" is far from being over, "as is shown by the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe vs Wade."
According to the former interior minister, it is time to "mobilise and defend the Christian foundations of Spanish society more. We don't want to make ourselves complicit by remaining silent about the laws."
"Children are not part of women's bodies"
One of the demonstrators is Beatriz. She tells Vida y estilo that the abortion law in Spain is "an authentic genocide because it kills human beings." She added that women can do with their bodies as they please but that the unborn child is not part of it. She sees the US ruling as "a step forward" and hopes Spain will follow suit.
Abortion law reform
In total, about 2.5 million unborn children have died from abortion. That is what Navyeli Rodriguez, Spanish coordinator of the pro-life platform 40 Days for Life, estimates.
She says that the pro-life movement is more vital than ever before. "We are the present and the future. We are here to change the world."
Recently, the Spanish government passed a proposal to reform the abortion law by abolishing the three-day reflection period for women who want an abortion. Furthermore, girls from 16 years and older can request an abortion without needing parental consent. The bill is now up for vote in the House of Representatives. After that, the Senate will have to look at it as well.
Also, Carmen Fernández, the CEU Institute for Family Studies director, criticises the government proposal. "This is another step to stop people from thinking", she says at the pro-life march in Madrid, according to Die Tagespost. Furthermore, she stressed that he wants to take care of the lives "of those who need us most."
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