Russia’s Novgorod region bans ‘coercing’ women to have abortions

Authorities in Russia’s Novgorod region have passed a law banning “coercing” women to have abortions.

According to the law, “coercion” refers to any act committed with the intent to “coerce a pregnant woman to undergo an abortion using persuasion, suggestion, bribery, deception, or other methods.” The document states that an offense will be considered committed whether or not an abortion was actually performed.

Fines for violating the law will range from 3,000-5,000 rubles ($33-$56) for private citizens, 25,000-50,000 rubles ($278-$556) for officials, and 100,000-200,000 rubles ($1,112-$2,223) for legal entities.

There has been a recent widespread campaign in Russia to restrict abortion access. Private clinics in many regions now completely or partially refuse to perform abortions, and local authorities in many places have introduced fines for “coercing” women to have abortions.

On December 13, a bill was introduced to the Russian State Duma that proposes banning abortions in private clinics at the federal level.