Julia Symmes Cobb. Luisa Floranda Gonzalez

BOGOTA, (Reuters) – Judges at Colombia’s Constitutional Court voted Monday in favor of decriminalizing abortion for 24 weeks, according to a statement. It was a victory in favour of groups representing abortion rights who sought to have this procedure removed from Colombia’s penal code.

Colombia is now included in a growing list of Latin American countries that have liberalized abortion access recently, which includes Ecuador and Mexico.

Colombian courts granted partial legalization to abortion in 2006, but only for rape and fatal fetal defects.

Monday’s ruling supported by five judges means that women won’t be prosecuted if they seek abortions during 24 weeks gestation. Following this, only the initial three conditions will apply.

The court stated in a statement that abortion is only punishable if it occurs after the 24th week of gestation. In all other cases, the time limit does not apply to Ruling C-355, 2006.

Congress and national governments must immediately adopt policies to ensure the rights and well-being of pregnant women. The court added that this includes family planning services, eliminating barriers to abortion and support for adoptions.

Causa Justa, the coalition that sued in September 2020 for decriminalization, estimated around 90% of abortions take place in clandestine, placing women’s lives in danger as they look for safer alternatives to visiting a doctor. “We did it!” The coalition is composed of over 90 feminist organisations.

Outside, it was celebrated by its supporters who wore green and some were crying to symbolize the movement for abortion rights.

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Mexico’s Supreme Court has decriminalized abortion, and Ecuador’s National Assembly approved last week regulations that allow abortion for rape cases.

Gabriel Boric, the Chilean president in succession has pledged to open up this procedure as freely and without restrictions.

The decision does not end the fight of abortion rights advocates for legalization.

In a statement, Nancy Northup (president of Center for Reproductive Rights in New York City) stated that Colombia’s next step will be to decriminalize abortion.

In its lawsuit, the coalition claimed that prosecuting women or girls who seek and obtain abortions has worsened stigmatization and scared patients and doctors even when only one of three conditions applies.

According to Causa Justa, 350 women were either convicted of or sanctioned by the Supreme Court for aborting between 2006 and 2019. This includes at least 80 teenage girls.

The group stated that decriminalization would reduce the deaths from clandestine surgical procedures, save under-funded money in the health system, eliminate costly prosecutions and protect women’s bodily autonomy.

Although a ruling was expected to be made in the second half of last year, it has repeatedly been delayed by a recusal request from judges and other procedural issues.

On Monday, there were also a lot of anti-abortion demonstrators outside the court.

Daniela Clavijo said, “We don’t want legal abortion or clandestine abortion.” She was speaking out before the decision. “We want the court to completely penalize abortion so that there is never any condition for it.”