Draft law submitted to Ukrainian Parliament to prohibit abortion at woman's will

Member of Ukrainian Parliament (faction “Poroshenko Bloc”) Dmitry Golubov offers to allow abortion for medical reasons only or if conception occurred as a result of rape.

According to Interfax-Ukraine, the draft law (No. 6239) on making amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine concerning restrictions on the artificial termination of pregnancy (abortion) was registered in Parliament on Monday, but the text of the document was published on the Parliament’s website on Wednesday.

The lawmaker proposes to repeal the provision of the Civil Code of Ukraine that abortion may be carried out below 12 weeks at the request of a woman.

The MP proposes to allow legal abortion only in certain circumstances if the pregnancy does not exceed 22 weeks.

The bill provides that abortion can be made in health care institutions, if a pregnancy poses an immediate threat to the life of a pregnant woman, if there is medical evidence for fetal pathology incompatible with life after the child’s birth, and if conception occurred as a result of rape.

The bill’s author is a member of the parliamentary committee on legal policy and justice.