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 Editorials | Issues | April 2007 
Mexico City Mayor: "I Won't Veto Legalization of Abortion"
 vivirlatino.com
| | Mexico City mayor Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon |
Just when you thought the abortion debate in Mexico City couldn't get any hotter, Mexico City mayor Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon announced to pro-life activists who are demanding he stop legalization of abortion that he would not veto the bill once it comes to his office, and described the president of one pro-life organization as "fascist":
"What you are asking me to do is to veto a bill that hasn't even been approved yet and I'm not going to veto it. I've never vetoed any bill approved by the Legislative Assembly, and I'm not vetoing this one either," he said.
Ebrard, who once again referred to Serrano Limón [president of Pro-Vida] as a person with a fascist nature... explained that he will respond to the request as he would with any other citizen and said "because I AM a very tolerant person."
Pro-life activists and the church are going to have a hard time fighting the legalization of abortion in Mexico City, as more and more residents are looking at this issue as a private one that cannot be dictated by the local government. The Legislative Assembly held a public forum yesterday to voice opinions on the issue, and Martha Lucía Mícher, president of the Women's Institute of Mexico City demanded a stop to:
"...double standards and laws based on moral and religious prejudices. The government has the obligation to center its efforts on the subjects of this controversy: women."
She went on to say that "Mexican society has already accepted abortion, while the law continues to prohibit it."
Mícher, a Catholic, quipped "I'm a Catholic and I feel free to choose. I haven't had an abortion, but I've probably been ex-communicated several times."
Highlighting the hypocrisy of the current law, historian Patricia Galeana:
"...reminded the audience that according to an investigation conducted all over the country and with the help of nurses, it was proven that in luxury hospitals "they will perform abortions for 2000 pesos [about 200 dollars], all over this country." She also added that 80 percent of people who have abortions are practicing Catholics and the rest were of other or no religion."
Expect this debate to heat up even more as the bill approaches approval and heads into the national spotlight.
What will be interesting to watch is president Felipe Calderon's reaction. He has already stated that he thinks that the law should remain "as is" but I wonder if he'll use his power to try stop this bill. Being from the right and knowing that Mexico City sets the tone for the rest of the country, this must weigh heavily on the president's mind. |
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