2nd Anniversary of Abortion Law Amendment, but No Solution for Those Wishing to Terminate Pregnancy. The Tam Tang Group Performs a Ritual, Overturns a Bowl, and Curses the Minister of Public Health
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Today (February 7, 2023), more than 20 members of the Tam Tang group dressed in white to participate in an activity in front of the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Health. They invited monks to receive offerings to dedicate merit to the souls lost due to the impact of neglect, indifference, and lack of enforcement of the abortion law, Criminal Code Section 305, which was announced in February 2021.
A representative of the Tam Tang group explained before the activity began:
“The amended law seems good, but from our work experience, we find that many women who wish to terminate their pregnancies do not know where to access safe services. This is the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Health, which has never clearly communicated about service locations. Meanwhile, many state service centers refuse to provide this service, either by persuading pregnant women to continue their pregnancies or by citing the unpreparedness of service units.
… As a result, there are still people who cannot access abortion services even though the law has been amended, even though they can use their rights under the Universal Health Coverage Fund. This is no different from pushing women to seek illegal abortion services, which pose risks to their lives, bodies, and minds.”
After that, offerings were made to dedicate merit to the souls affected by the state’s inaction. Ms. Sulayporn Chonwilai, a human rights activist, spoke further about the situation:
“Sometimes you may not know that someone you know has had an abortion because there are more people who have had abortions in this world and country than you think. But because of prejudice and stigma in society, we have no opportunity to know the true number of those who want to access services. With advanced technology, abortions today can be safe, more so than having to take risks… but because the reasons behind the decision to have an abortion are not something anyone wants to hear… Ultimately, this is a risk that will increase the number of losses, even though this country has safe abortion services.”
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Later, the Tam Tang group submitted an open letter to the Minister of Public Health, urging the Ministry of Public Health to expedite the implementation of the amended Criminal Code Act (No. 28) B.E. 2564, with a representative from the Office of the Permanent Secretary receiving it. Some of the demands are as follows:
1. Announce the list of safe abortion service centers and the list of agencies providing alternative consultations nationwide for public awareness.
2. Require public health service centers under the Ministry of Public Health to provide safe abortion services in at least one service center per province, setting it as a ministry-level indicator to increase the number of service centers by at least 5-10 per year.
3. Require public health service centers under the Ministry of Public Health that do not wish to establish safe abortion service units to have the duty to refer clients to safe abortion service centers according to the system, with a clear operational plan or referral mechanism to ensure that clients receive safe abortion services until the process is complete.
(Read the full open letter at https://drive.google.com/file/d/12PpMYLVhtBEzi5JKbKz9JPjmGE9WxFA4/view?usp=sharing)
At the same time, a representative of the group, as a woman who has experienced abortion, shared her feelings with the media:
“To this day, even though the law was amended 2 years ago, we still don’t know any additional information from state agencies or service units. Where are services available, what are the prices, what rights can be used? The inability to access this type of health service means being forced to continue a pregnancy, even if one may not be ready. It’s as if the law was amended just to pass… Why are those in power in the ministry so indifferent, unclear, and unable to perform their duties to this extent?”
Finally, there was an activity to overturn a bowl, severing ties with the administration of Mr. Anutin Charnvirakul, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Health, whose operations have impacted the public in various policies, including the management of the COVID situation and the budget cuts for abortion and contraception services for insured persons in the social security system and civil servant rights.
Those interested in information and following related stories can follow the Tam Tang group fan page and the “Talk to Women Who Have Had Abortions” fan page.
#TamTang #Abortion #MinisterOfPublicHealth #Anutin
Source: Facebook Fanpage – Rsathai