The Justice Ministry has withdrawn its recently announced plans to amend the Criminal Code with increased fines for illegal abortions due to extreme public criticism claiming infringement on women’s bodily autonomy. In an announcement on Tuesday, the ministry stated that the draft notice will be reviewed again before any further action is taken.
The amendment focused on most circumstances of abortions after the 24th week of pregnancy, for-profit operations, and the injury or death of women undergoing an illegal procedure, raising the fines from the previous minimum of NT$3,000 (approximately US$94) to a new maximum of NT$500,000 (nearly US$15,650).
The plans triggered criticism from women's groups, who believed that this violated the spirit of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and infringed on women's bodily autonomy.
The Justice Ministry stated that it believes the amendment protects both the bodily autonomy and health rights of pregnant women and also the fetus. It emphasized that since no consensus has been reached, the draft has been withdrawn and will continue discussion and development.