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Church leaders in Mexico have condemned the relaxation of anti-abortion legislation in the country's capital, Mexico City, writes Thomas Norton. The bill to legalise abortion in the first 14 weeks of pregnancy is expected to be passed by the assembly that controls the federal district of Mexico City. Abortion is illegal in the rest of Mexico except in cases of rape, although in Mexico City, home to nine million people, it is permitted in cases where the mother's life is in danger. The Bishops' Conference of Mexico condemned the legislation as the beginning of a "programme of extermination" and called on legislators to "reaffirm their commitment to life", in a statement released on 15 March. The leader of the assembly, Victor Hugo Cirigo, whose left-leaning Partido de la Revolucion Democratica holds 34 out of 66 seats on the assembly, was quoted as saying: "No church, no religion can impose its vision of the world in this city." It is not the first time that the city's lawmakers have clashed with the Church. In December the assembly passed a bill allowing civil unions, and the country's first same-sex partnerships were registered this week.  |
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