Disturbing read…
http://www.dawn.com/weekly/review/review3.htm
By Ishtiaq Ali Mehkri
Unless people are made fully aware of “safe sex”, they will continue to resort to illegal abortions as a form of contraception. Ishtiaq Ali Mehkri reports.
Samreen, a house maid, disappeared from work one day, causing much concern amongst her employers, who looked everywhere for her. Her neighbours weren’t sure of her whereabouts either; many speculated that she may have fled to her hometown in Tharparkar. A couple of weeks later, Samreen returned to work and resumed her duties. However, she was not as cheerful and active as she used to be and looked confused and irritable.
Finally, on much insistence, she revealed to her employer that she had been involved in an intimate relationship with one of her neighbours and had become pregnant. She confided that she had resorted to having an abortion. The abortion itself was a painful and traumatic experience. She complained that there were few facilities around for ill-fated women like herself, and that she was forced to pay an exorbitant amount - Rs 5,000 - for the abortion.
Naheed, a housewife, had a similar, painful experience to share.She had her pregnancy aborted in the fourth month and complained that the ban on abortions was a hurdle for those married couples who simply could not afford having another child.
In Pakistan, married couples are entitled to have an abortion but only when the child is considered by physicians and the coroner’s office to be malformed. If the mother’s health is considered to be endangered by the pregnancy, she can opt for an abortion.
“The ban on abortion is leading to population explosion as well as an increase in prostitution,” commented Nuzhat Rehman, a social worker. She observed that because of the overwhelming number of uneducated women and a lack of awareness of health and reproduction issues, the number of women opting for abortion is rising.
According to Rehana Hassan, a woman who works at an NGO specializing in women’s reproductive health, lack of awareness about contraceptives and their proper usage can be attributed as the main reason behind the rise in abortions. She believes that, despite the best efforts of NGOs to promote the usage of contraceptives, they have not met with much success.
On investigating abortion, TR learnt that it is either married women who do not wish to have a child; or women who practice unsafe sex who resort to abortion.
Getting an abortion in Pakistan is not easy. A survey revealed that public sector hospitals do not perform an abortion until and unless it is a genuine case of miscarriage or there exists some health problems.And even in such cases, only married women and legal pregnancy nature cases are entertained.
Sources said that apart from the law, a number of other checks also come into play in reducing illegal abortion procedures at public sector hospitals. It is sometimes very difficult to convince the authorities and doctors to performabortions at public sector hospitals. The formalities include the gynecologists’ consent, and that of the O.T technicians and anesthesiologists.
In the private sector, however, there a number of ways of bending the law on abortion. It was reported that most private hospitals as well as maternity homes perform illegal abortion procedures and surgeries - and charge exorbitant amounts.
Most of the clients are from the lower and middle classes. Many are involved in pre-marital or extra-marital affairs. The entire procedure can cost from 5,000 to 10,000 rupees. Furthermore, there are many loopholes in the trade, and clients are also made to suffer all kinds of harassment.
Unlike other countries like Iran and Indonesia, where midwives carrying out illegal abortions and face severe penalties, there are no such heavy restrictions nor penalties for those who commit the crime in Pakistan. They can be released at a price and observers argue that this has helped the commercial sex industry flourish.
A survey of Karachi revealed that there are around 46 private maternity homes that frequently entertain abortion cases, both of legal and illegal nature. Furthermore, hospital sources and clients confided that such cases are admitted regularly as those with gynaecological disorders have the abortion procedure performed.
Dr Samina at the Liaquat National Hospital was quite sceptical about the hygiene standards used during an abortion, and feared it to be life-threatening for the mother. Though many doctors denied the practice of illegal abortions in private clinics, sources claimed that reputed doctors from the public sector do indeed perform such casesat private centres.
In the private sector, these doctors have been blamed for not taking the care required for the necessary medication, precautions, and sterilization processes. There are approximately one hundred midwives’ centers in the slum areas and other poor localities of Karachi where abortions are performed. Such centers are commonly called zacha bacha clinics.
Hameeda Mai, a midwife who lives in Moosa Colony, claims that daais like her perform abortions if the pregnancy is in its early stages - up to a maximum of two months. They do not take cases where pregnancy has matured for more than two months. She, however, confessed that this is big business these days and many of her aides are asked to render their services at the client’s house to keep it a secret so as to avoid the social stigma and damage to the family’s reputation.
A veteran NGO social worker, requesting anonymity, said that a report- that couldn’t be released due to various socio-political considerations - had recorded that about 70 per cent of college-going girls were subject to abuse and had become pregnant. He said that many unmarried girls became pregnant as result of molestation at the hands of their peers or relatives at home and workplace. He observed that many such cases lead to abortions.
The Edhi services were also critical of the issue, and commented that a large number of “unclaimed” and “illegitimate” children ended up at their sanctuaries in their infancy.
Sources at the Edhi women’s home, in the outskirts of Karachi, said that a large number of women turn to the home claiming to be homeless but many, within days or weeks, turn out to be pregnant. However, Edhi claimed that they do not opt for abortion and instead, prefer to let the law of nature take its course.
Doctors and anumber of midwives were of the view that a large number of abortion cases could be avoided by using contraceptives. Public awareness in this regard is very essential, especially amongst the poor.
A probe into some 15 maternity homes in the private sector revealed that a large number of reported abortion cases were those of a legal nature - and could have been avoided if couples had opted for contraceptive measures.
During the course of this investigation, TR learnt that there was far more awareness in brothels regarding safe sex. Workers and clients were found to be quite aware of sexually transmitted diseases.TR also learnt that not a single abortion case was reported in these areas, thus negating any linkage between “formal” prostitution and recourse to abortion.