Abortion in UAE | Abortion in Bangalore India Alternative
Abortion Law in the UAE
Abortions in the UAE are extremely rare due to the fact that the law prohibiting abortion is strictly enforced and carries harsh penalties. In the UAE it is considered a crime for a woman to abort her pregnancy except in extreme cases where the mother or baby is unlikely to survive the pregnancy.
A woman may get an abortion only if continuing the pregnancy will put the mother in significant danger or if the baby carries extreme birth defects that make it unlikely to survive. In both cases however the abortion must occur prior to 120 days of pregnancy.
If the baby is discovered to have a defect is must be one in which the child is almost certain to not survive. A panel of experts must rule on the pregnancy and the defect in order for the woman to have an abortion.
It is for this reason that the only abortions reported to UAE residents were performed outside the country. Many abortion clinics do pop up in certain areas of the UAE but they are quickly shut down and all doctors and patients receive harsh penalties.
Penalties for Abortion in the UAE
Those choosing to attempt an abortion either on their own by taking pills or through an underground abortion clinic can face stiff punishments. The maximum sentence for a woman who gets an abortion in the UAE is 5 years in prison and 100 lashes.
Recently a South African woman was convicted of having an abortion after she took some pills given to her by a friend. When she went to the hospital for hemorrhaging she was reported to authorities.
The woman was sentenced to six months in prison and was deported from the UAE. Her sentence is lenient compared to most, partly due to lack of evidence and partly due to the fact that she was not aware of the local laws.
The penalties for abortion are often harsher for women who are found to have an abortion while being unmarried. This is considered a severe violation of the law and is highly disregarded.
The story remains a harsh reminder of the restrictions on abortion in the UAE. It is for this reason that women in the UAE travel outside the country in order to get an abortion.
Unsafe Abortion in the UAE
Women who choose to have an abortion and do not travel outside the UAE to a safe medical clinic face consequences greater than a prison sentence. Due to the restrictions and penalties on abortions, the illegal abortion clinics rarely have the ability to provide a safe environment for an abortion.
Often these clinics must be ready to move quickly and are sparsely equipped, leaving little care to the safety of the woman. Since few doctors are willing to risk their careers or their freedom to perform illegal abortions, the people who do perform illegal abortions often have very little medical training.
There are online message boards that offer DIY abortions for desperate women. They offer their own dosing instructions for dangerous drugs, or offering to do a free medical procedure to terminate the pregnancy if the pills do not work. Rarely do any of these merchants provide any warnings about the dangers or any insight into the risk involved in their procedures.
As seen in the case of the South African woman, the pills given to desperate pregnant women can have deadly side effects. Often these online merchants offer abortion pills with little idea of how they work; doubling or tripling the dose if a woman is further along in her pregnancy.
Women who choose abortions in the UAE often have no other option. A woman who is unmarried and becomes pregnant has committed a crime. If discovered she will be sent to prison (along with her baby) and once her sentence is completed she will be deported.
Options for Women wanting an abortion in the UAE
Unfortunately there are very few options for women who want to have an abortion in the UAE. There are no safe options within the UAE if the mother does not meet the strict requirements of UAE law.
The only other safe option would be to travel outside the UAE for medical termination of pregnancy. In 2008, there were 116 reported abortions by UAE residents all of which took place outside of the country.
Bangalore India is a progressive, medically advanced and popular location for woman who hope to have a safe and legal abortion. The Genesis Abortion Center in Bangalore India offers safe, legal and confidential abortions for patients meeting the applicable conditions, in Bangalore, India.
I would like to seek 6 week old abortion for my wife who is an Algerian National living in Dubai. We are married officially in UAE for 5 years now.
But an unplanned pregnancy we want to avoid.