In a momentous victory for the worldwide pro-life movement, Argentina’s Senate rejected a bill August 9 that would have legalized abortion at up to 14 weeks gestation. The vote was 38-31, despite the fact that conservative President Mauricio Macri declared that he would sign the bill. The Senate was shown on a big television screen outside as thousands of pro-lifers waited in the cold to watch the final vote tally. The moment the legislation was defeated, cheering and dancing broke out as the pro-lifers waved flags reading “Toda Vida Vale” or “all life has worth.”
Argentina is the birthplace of Pope Francis and is home to millions of Catholics who were determined not to cave to the pressure of feminist advocates. As the debate in Argentina was going on, Francis stated publicly that abortion was akin to the Nazi practice of eugenics against people with birth defects.
In Brazil, the fate of abortion lies with the country’s Supreme Court, which recently began hearings on the question of allowing abortions through the 12th week of pregnancy. The case was brought by the Socialism and Liberty Party of Brazil. According to the Guardian, “opposition to any loosening of existing laws – which currently ban abortions except in the case of rape or threat to a woman’s life – remains strong. Jair Bolsonaro, the leading conservative presidential candidate in Brazil’s forthcoming elections has pledged to veto decriminalization attempts, while evangelical Christian members of congress are pushing a rival bill that would make abortion illegal in all circumstances.”
Brazil and Argentina are the first and fourth-most populous countries in the region, so if both were to reject the extreme leftist abortion legislation it would be an incredible victory for pro-lifers, especially the Catholic community. Catholic churches throughout Brazil simultaneously range their bells at 3 PM August 7 “to sound a warning regarding the possible decriminalization of abortion,” reports Catholic News Agency.
Pro-lifers are also facing a battle to stop the legalization of abortion in Chile for any reason up to 14 weeks of pregnancy, in opposition to the president of the Chilean Senate Committee on Health. Guido Guirardi has disgustingly called unborn babies “a germ of life, which is not a person…” with “no consciousness, brain, feeling, or life history.” Chilean president Sebastian Piñera has promised to oppose such efforts by legislators like Guirardi, saying he will do “everything that is necessary to defend life,” according to CNA.