The Republican-controlled Indiana Senate passed a bill Saturday that would ban abortion at all stages of pregnancy with limited exceptions, despite opposition from abortion rights and anti-abortion advocates.
State lawmakers, meeting in a special legislative session to consider restrictions on abortion, passed the Senate Bill on a 26-20 vote after nearly four hours of heated debate.
The text now moves to the Republican-controlled state House for consideration; if it becomes law, it will take effect on September 1.
Ten Republicans crossed party lines on Saturday by voting against the bill, with some saying the near-total ban didn’t go far enough.
The GOP-authored bill states that those seeking an abortion after rape or incest would have to sign a statement attesting to the attack.
Indiana currently allows abortions up to 20 weeks after fertilization (or 22 weeks after the mother’s last menstrual period).
It is one of two states, including West Virginia, that are reconvening special sessions to consider abortion restrictions since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in late June, discovering that there was no longer a federal constitutional right to procedure.
Discussions on Saturday were at times heated and emotional, replicating the project debates from earlier in the week.
State Senate President Suzanne Crouch, a Republican, has threatened to empty the gallery more than once after outbursts of reaction both from inside the session and from protesters gathered outside.
The affiliate of CNN WRTV filmed large numbers of protesters gathered and chanting opposition to the bill in the hall. Some held signs that read “my body, my choice” and “abortion bans replace freedom with force.”
The bill’s sponsor, Republican Senator Susan Glick, had previously admitted she was not happy with it, and called it “the vehicle law” on Saturday. Glick said she hopes the House will make changes, but added in its current form, the bill is an “expression of where we believe the state of Indiana is right now.” If the state House makes changes to the bill, it will return to the Senate for another vote.
Democratic senator Jean Breaux called SB1 a “flawed bill” that A “robs women of their right to choose.” Breaux added: “The decision to have a baby is a complicated balance of responsibilities and opportunities that must be considered by every woman, not made by politicians or Supreme Court justices.”
The bill passed a Senate committee on Tuesday, with some Republican members voting in favor of the bill but hoping it would be amended.
The committee also held extensive public debate earlier in the week, with dozens of individuals, from doctors to religious leaders and private citizens, voicing their views on the bill.
While some opposed the bill because of the limits it imposed on abortion, others opposed the measure because of its exceptions or what they described as vague language.
The anti-abortion group National Right to Life and its affiliate in Indiana expressed opposition to the bill before it passed the state Senate, calling it “deeply flawed” and a “weak and worrying” measure.
“The bill substantially fails in many areas, including its failure to provide any significant enforcement provisions. This bill follows the motions on paper but lacks the force to actually reduce abortions in Indiana by imprisoning those who perform abortions or intentionally circumventing the law responsible for criminal consequences,” Indiana Right to Life said in a statement.
Source: CNN Brasil
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