In Mexico, over 30 people sustain injuries in Feminist protests to legalise abortion

An official of the Mexico Police Agency, Marcela Figueroa stated on Wednesday that 37 police officers and citizens were injured during marches by the feminist movement in Mexico City in support of abortion legalisation. Figueroa took to the microblogging site Twitter and wrote, "Report at the end of the march: 37 people injured. Of these, 27 fellow police officers, one colleague from the Secretary of Government and nine civilians (5 women and 4 men). Of all of them, four fellow police officers required hospital transfer."

Police and business leaders began preparing for the marches in Mexico City as early as the previous night. Metal shields were placed over shop windows and doors, while landmarks, historical buildings and the National Palace which serves as the rally's final destination, were fenced, as per Sputnik.

Abortion is currently illegal in most Latin American countries

Female extremists wearing balaclava helmets and equipped with paint sprays, chains and hammers always attend these events, according to Sputnik. On International Safe Abortion Day, held on Tuesday, feminist organisations from Colombia, Venezuela, Guatemala and Salvador protested for the legalising of abortions, which are currently illegal in most Latin American countries.

Abortions in Mexico are governed by municipal laws and were formerly authorised in four of the country's 32 states. The Mexican Supreme Court ruled the ban on abortions up to 12 weeks of pregnancy as unconstitutional on September 7, but the precedent has yet to be reflected in the legislation of 28 states, where the medical procedure is punishable by up to three years in prison unless it is performed in cases of rape or in cases of certain medical conditions.

Thousands of Latin American women die each year as a result of unsafe abortions

Thousands of Latin American women die each year as a result of unsafe abortions, at a time when the region's adolescent pregnancies and sexual assaults are on the rise. In Colombia, where abortion is only permitted in cases of rape, danger to the mother's life or birth deformities, some 800 women marched through the city centre. Protesters brandished banners that read "Legal Abortion Now," "Right to Decide," and donned green scarves that are emblematic of the global movement to decriminalise abortion. 

Image: AP