Update: Urge Congress To Decriminalize Abortion

In May 2017, the Dominican Senate voted to reject the President’s recommendations to decriminalize abortion. The President’s recommendations are now being discussed by the Justice Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, which is expected to vote on the recommendations soon. If the Chamber also rejects the President’s recommendations, the Dominican Republic’s Criminal Code will continue to violate the rights of women and girls.

In May 2017, the Dominican Senate voted to reject the President’s recommendations to decriminalize abortion. The President’s recommendations are now being discussed by the Justice Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, which is expected to vote on the recommendations soon. If the Chamber also rejects the President’s recommendations, the Dominican Republic’s Criminal Code will continue to violate the rights of women and girls.   1) TAKE ACTION Write a letter, send an email, call, fax or tweet:

• Urging the Justice Commission to endorse without modification the President’s observations and to expressly recommend that the Chamber of Deputies vote in favour of the observations;
• Expressing your profound concern that women and girls in the Dominican Republic are at risk of having their rights to life, health, and freedom from discrimination, torture and ill-treatment violated if the President’s recommendations are rejected and the criminalization of abortion is maintained;
• Calling on Congress to ensure access to abortion both in law and in practice, at a minimum, in cases where pregnancy poses a risk to the life or the physical or mental health of a pregnant woman or girl, in cases where the foetus will be unable to survive outside the womb, and in cases where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest.

Contact these two officials by 27 July, 2017:

President of the Justice Commission Henry Modesto Merán Gil Av Jiménez Moya, Centro de los Héroes de Constanza Maimón y Estero Hondo, Edificio Congreso Nacional Distrito Nacional, Dominican Republic Fax: +1 809-535-6541 Email: [email protected] Salutation: Señor Diputado / Dear Congressman

Ambassador José Tomás Pérez Embassy of the Dominican Republic 1715 22nd St. NW Washington DC 20008 Fax: 202 265 8057 Phone: 202 332 6280 E-mail: [email protected] Salutation: Dear Ambassador

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