Iran: Number of women forced to undergo illegal abortions on the rise

 Sunday, January 12, 2025

Islamabad (Point News Today/ Pakistan Point News - DW Urdu - January 12, 2025) Although Iranian authorities have severely restricted access to abortion in an effort to stem the population decline, most women resort to illegal means to terminate unwanted pregnancies.

Iranian news website Khabar Online reported in June 2024, citing Iranian Health Ministry figures, that more than 600,000 illegal abortions are performed in Iran annually.

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Experts say poverty, unemployment and lack of social security are among the factors that force women to have abortions despite the serious risks.

In November 2021, Iranian lawmakers, under the patronage of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, passed a law called “Population Restoration and Family Support.”

The ‘Population Law’, which was implemented for a seven-year trial period, was also condemned by the United Nations.

UN human rights experts have called for the law to be repealed. They have called the legislation “a direct violation of women’s human rights under international law.”

“The law violates the right to life and health by restricting access to various reproductive health services and information on reproductive rights,” UN activists say.

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Strict restrictions on reproductive health

The Population Law allows abortions only when the life of the mother or fetus is at risk, and this permission is granted by a panel consisting of a judge, a court-appointed doctor and a forensic doctor.

Doctors or surgeons who perform illegal abortions can face penalties such as revocation of their licenses, imprisonment for two to five years and heavy fines.

Contraceptives are also no longer provided free of charge in health centers or pharmacies. Furthermore, the law criminalizes any form of sterilization.

‘Black market’ for abortions

There are numerous indications that government sanctions have turned Iran into a growing black market for abortion drugs.

Dr. Parveen Dilshad, a lecturer at the University of Queensland in Australia, told DW that the restrictions are contributing to an increase in maternal mortality rates due to ‘illegal abortion methods’.

“Regardless of whether an abortion is performed at home, using medication or surgically, it should be performed under the supervision of a specialist. In both cases, it must be ensured that there is no risk to life.”

Dilshad stressed that doctors should ensure that women undergoing abortions do not suffer from sexually transmitted diseases, as this increases the risk of abdominal infections and subsequent infertility.

According to Dr. Dilshad, women taking illegal abortion drugs are often unaware of the health complications and risk their lives with unsafe abortions.

Iranian Ministry of Health data shows that about 60 percent of abortions are performed at home using abortion pills, 30 percent in doctors’ clinics and 10 percent in ‘herbal stores’, where herbal products are used.

Population problem in Iran

In November 2024, Iran's Deputy Health Minister Alireza Raisi warned that the declining birth rate meant that Iran's population could drop by 50 percent by 2100.

In addition to strict restrictions on reproductive health, Iran's population law is offering "incentives" to encourage families to have more children.

These include providing 200 square meters of land to families with a third child, new cars for mothers having a second child, and full health insurance for unemployed mothers with three or more children.

But whether Iranian authorities can actually provide these incentives to families, a sociologist at Tehran University told DW, expressed doubts. "Before we talk about population growth, we should ask ourselves how many resources are actually available.

Can these promises be fulfilled?”

The expert, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added that without the full acceptance of the Iranian people on having more children, the laws will only have a superficial effect, even if they are imposed through repressive measures: “What about the quality of life and social welfare? Is there fair access to health care and education, and what is the situation in the labor market?”

According to the sociologist, even if these laws encourage more people in economically disadvantaged situations to have more children, the fundamental problems in Iran’s economy and society will remain a challenge to future development.