The Constitutional Court of Georgia has accepted for a consideration a lawsuit filed by the Public Defender concerning the legal restrictions on the right to abortion for women victims of violence. The subject of the lawsuit is the provision according to which the mandatory basis for the termination of pregnancy between 12-22 weeks resulting from rape is a court conviction confirming that the woman is a victim of rape.
The Public Defender emphasized in the lawsuit, that this requirement poses a problem because the length of court proceedings in general jurisdiction often exceeds not only the allowed 22-week period for abortion, but also the entire duration of the pregnancy. As a result, women who are victims of rape are unable to obtain a conviction within the time limit for induced abortion.
The lawsuit notes that the legitimate aim of the controversial rule may be to reduce the number of illegal abortions and thereby protect women’s health. However, the said objective can be achieved by less restrictive methods that are more in line with the interests of women victims of violence.
It is noted that “the mentioned norm is the only norm that, based on Article 140, Clause 2 of the Law of Georgia “On Health Protection”, defines pregnancy as a result of rape as a social sign and grounds for abortion.” “From the point of view of women’s equality, victims of sexual violence are one of the most vulnerable groups. “From the point of view of women’s equality, victims of sexual violence are one of the most vulnerable groups. The denial of an abortion to a woman in such a situation may become an additional source of psycho-emotional stress and social stigma,” the lawsuit emphasizes.
The Public Defender also stressed that “among the verdicts issued by the common courts for the crime of rape, the shortest time it took for the court to reach a verdict for rape is 4 months (Kutaisi City Court’s verdict of March 19, 2018 N1/136-18)”, highlighting that the lengthy duration of legal proceedings potentially undermines the timely delivery of justice and the effectiveness of legal remedies in sexual assault cases.
According to the position of the Public Defender, the restriction established by the disputed norm violates the right of women victims of sexual violence to free development and autonomy, protected by the right to privacy.
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