A bill that would legally establish the human rights of unborn children, but would not alter abortion laws, has been introduced into the Italian Senate, the Italian news agency ANSA reports.
Maurizio Gasparri, a Member of the Italian Parliament for the Alleanza Nazionale party, said, “What we want is to establish limits against new abortion techniques that violate the law’s original intent.”
Donatella Portetti, a senator representing the largest opposition group, the Democratic Party, said the law is ”the government’s latest assault on Italians’ freedom to decide whether they want to live, die or have children.”
Italian law currently allows abortion on demand up to the 12th week of pregnancy and after that in cases where the life of the woman would be at risk or the child is believed to suffer from a disability which would put the mother at risk of “serious psychological or physical consequences.”
The proposed law comes at the same time that Italy is considering the sale of the deadly abortion drug RU486. The Italian Pharmaceuticals Agency (AIFA) approved the drug for use in the country this summer stipulating that it must be administered by physicians in hospitals up to the 49th day of pregnancy, but not sold over the counter in pharmacies.
Last week the Senate delayed the implementation of the decision, citing safety concerns. Maurizio Sacconi, the Welfare and Health Minister, said, “Italy’s abortion laws were not conceived with a pharmaceutical solution in mind.”
