UNITED STATES: North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum signed legislation on Monday that outlaws abortions throughout pregnancy with exceptions up to six weeks gestation, making it one of the nation’s harshest anti-abortion laws.
Only situations involving rape, incest, or medical emergencies such as an ectopic pregnancy were allowed for abortion during those early weeks. Burgum stated that the bill “reaffirms North Dakota as a pro-life state”.
The US supreme court decision last year overturned the 1973 Roe v Wade verdict, leading to multiple state laws restricting or outlawing abortion. At least 13 states currently prohibit abortion at all stages of pregnancy, and additional states have put those restrictions on hold due to court orders.
Democratic governors in at least 20 states have started a network to increase access to abortions in response to the ruling, which took away women’s constitutional right to an abortion and transferred control of the procedure to state governments.
The North Dakota law passed on Monday is intended to go into effect immediately, but the state’s supreme court decided that a previous prohibition must remain in place while a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality is ongoing. The law is being defended by its backers as protecting human life, while its critics claim it will have disastrous effects.
North Dakota has no abortion facilities left, as the Red River Women’s Clinic relocated operations to Moorhead, Minnesota, where abortion is still allowed. The proprietor of the clinic is pursuing a lawsuit to question the legality of North Dakota’s previous abortion ban. The most recent state legislation was proposed by Janne Myrdal, a Republican.
Myrdal praised North Dakota’s pro-life values and expressed gratitude to the governor for upholding them. Democratic representative Liz Conmy expressed disappointment in the outcome of the vote and hoped Burgum would not sign the legislation.
Conmy predicts that women in North Dakota will take action to reclaim their rights, even though the legislature is in favour of conception. “Our state legislature is largely pro-pregnancy, but I believe women in the state want to make their own choices,” Conmy added.
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