Category: Bolivia

Bolivian Catholic Bishops comment on freedom of conscience and religion

Assert right to conscientious objection

Sean Murphy*

The Conference of Catholic Bishops of Bolivia have published a statement commenting favourably on changes to Bolivia’s law on freedom of conscience and religion. However, they criticize the failure to recognize a right to conscientious objection, referring to a physician in Sucre who is being disciplined for refusing to provide an abortion.

“[W]e have expressed on several occasions the need to recognize in Bolivia the right to conscientious objection, in this and other matters, because we consider first order safeguarding individual and thought freedom and because no one should be forced to act against their conscience.”

The right to conscientious objection

Archbishop supports doctor who refused to perform legal abortion

Correo del Sur

César Vale

Caution: Machine assisted translation of César Vale,”Arzobispo respalda a médico que se negó a practicar aborto legal.” Correo del Sur, 25 Marzo, 2019.

The archbishop of Sucre, Monsignor Jesus Juarez, backed the doctor of the National Health Fund (CNS) who refused to perform an abortion based on his claim of conscientious objection, and was subjected to administrative discipline.

“I would like to give my full support to all the doctors who really bet on life, first because life is the best gift that God makes humanity, and second, life is the first right that every person has, and also the right of the unborn, ” said Juarez.

In past days, the CNS of Sucre decided to suspend the doctor J.N.M., interim chief of the Gynecology and Obstetrics Service of the Obrero Hospital “Dr. Jaime Mendoza “, and to begin an administrative disciplinary proceeding for refusing to perform the legal termination of the pregnancy of citizen P.A.A.

Bolivian doctor to be prosecuted for refusing to perform an abortion

LifeSite News

Jeanne Smits

LA PAZ, Bolivia, March 25, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) — A Bolivian doctor has been suspended by that country’s National Health Fund (Caja Nacional de Salud) for having refused to perform an abortion on a woman pregnant with an anencephalic child. “N.M.,” as he is known, will also be prosecuted before an administrative court, together with the former director of the Jaime Mendoza Workers’ Hospital in Sucre, where the refusal took place.

Abortion is illegal in Bolivia except in cases of rape, incest, danger to the mother’s health, or a lethal malformation of the unborn child.

It was this last case that was invoked by a woman from Cochabamba in February of last year after medical examinations revealed that her baby had a serious congenital malformation. She was five months pregnant. . . [Full text]

Doctor who failed to comply suspended

The department head refused to provide a legal termination of pregnancy

Correo del Sur

Caution: Machine assisted translation of “Suspenden a médico que incumplió fallo: El Galeno Se Negó a Practiar Una Interrupción Legal del Embarazo.” Correo del Sur, 21 Marzo, 2019.

The Acting Chief of the Gynecology and Obstetrics Service of the Hospital Obrero Jaime Mendoza was suspended from his duties for not attending a pregnant woman who asked to terminate a high-risk pregnancy, in accordance with a constitutional decision.

The doctor, who justified his action with conscientious objection, failed to comply with the constitutional ruling that orders the legal interruption of pregnancy when it endangers the health or life of the woman. The Ombudsman’s Office learned about and followed up on the case since the middle of last year.

In response to an Ombudsman’s resolution issued last week requesting to establish civil, criminal or administrative action against those who failed to comply with the ruling, the National Health Fund (CNS) of Sucre decided to suspend the physician and announced a similar process against the former director of the hospital.

Because of lethal congenital malformations, the pregnant woman requested the legal termination at five months of pregnancy, which was denied, so she had to go to another health center.

A National Health Fund doctor who refused to perform a legal abortion is being disciplined

Correo del Sur

El Deber

Caution: Machine assisted translation of “Procesan a médico de la CNS que se negó a practicar un aborto legal.” Correo del Sur, 20 Marzo, 2019.

The National Health Fund (CNS) of Sucre decided to suspend the doctor J.N.M., interim chief of the Gynecology and Obstetrics Service of the Obrero Hospital “Dr. Jaime Mendoza “, and to initiate an administrative process for refusing to perform the legal termination of the pregnancy of citizen P.A.A.

The information was communicated to the defense delegation of Chuquisaca, by the regional administrator of the insurer in the capital of the country, Javier Mercado, who indicated that a similar process will also be started against the former director of that hospital, J.M.C.

The Ombudsman issued a ruling concerning the violation of the rights of citizen PAA, who was denied access to the procedure for the legal termination of pregnancy because there was congenital malformation in the fetus (anencephaly), according to medical diagnosis, rights supported in a constitutional decision and legal regulations.

In Bolivia, Constitutional Decision No. 206/2014 and Ministerial Resolution No. 027/2015 regulate the provision in health services of the legal and safe termination of pregnancy when it endangers the health or life of women, if there are lethal congenital malformations, or if it is the product of rape or rape and incest.

Menacho explained last Saturday, that he would wait for the official reports to decide what actions to take with respect to the doctor involved, since the professional had claimed an “objection of conscience” not to perform the abortion.

“The professionals of the institution took refuge in the ‘conscientious objection’, that is to say, that nobody can be forced to interrupt the life of a human being,” he explained in a press conference, explaining that the patient left the hospital to go to another one in which the abortion was performed.