| Abstract: | Abortų draudimo tema šiuo metu labai aktuali. Diskusijas visuomenės ir teisininkų tarpe sukėlė abortų draudimo įstatymo projektas. Iškilo klausimas, ar šio įstatymo priėmimas Lietuvos Respublikoje nepažeistų moters teisės į privataus gyvenimo neliečiamumą. Abortų teisinis reglamentavimas per laiką keitėsi. Senovėje abortas kaip persileidimas buvo leidžiamas, vėliau abortai buvo uždrausti. Su laiku abortų teisinis reglamentavimas pasikeitė, pereita prie liberalesnio požiūrio į abortus ir į moters teisę nutraukti nėštumą, todėl daugelyje valstybių įsitvirtino teisėti abortai. Šiuo metu tik trijose Europos Sąjungos valstybėse – Lenkijoje, Airijoje ir Maltoje − abortai yra draudžiami. Vienintelė Malta netaiko jokių išimčių. Sprendžiant, ar Lietuvos Respublikoje reikėtų uždrausti abortus, kyla priešprieša tarp moters teisės nutraukti nėštumą ir vaiko teisės į gyvybę. Teisės aktai, įtvirtinantys teisę į gyvybę, neapibrėžia, nuo kada prasideda žmogaus gyvybės teisinė apsauga, tačiau teisės subjektu laikytinas tik gimęs asmuo. Europos Žmogaus Teisių Teismas taip pat pripažįsta, kad vaisius negali būti laikomas asmeniu. Reprodukcinių teisių srityje, kurioje užtikrinamas savarankiškas sprendimų, susijusių su reprodukcine sveikata, priėmimas, teisė į abortą pripažįstama moters reprodukcine teise. Užtikrinant privatumo apsaugą, moters teisė į abortą įtvirtinta Jungtinių Amerikos Valstijų Aukščiausiojo Teismo sprendimuose. Asmens privatus gyvenimas suprantamas kaip teisė savarankiškai priimti sprendimus, susijusius su asmeniniu ar šeimyniniu gyvenimu, be kitų asmenų ar institucijų įsikišimo. Nacionalinių ir tarptautinių teisės aktų bei Europos Žmogaus Teisių Teismo praktikos analizė rodo, kad moters teisė nutraukti nėštumą įeina į privataus gyvenimo sritį, todėl padaryta išvada, kad abortų draudimas pažeistų moters teisę į privataus gyvenimo neliečiamumą.
Now the prohibition of abortions is a very topical issue in Lithuania. Discussions arose because of the draft law of abortions prohibition. The draft law is quite strict only with a few exceptions for the legal termination of pregnancy: when the pregnant woman’s life or health is at risk or there are reasonable suspicions that the pregnancy is a result of a criminal act. The law of abortions prohibition would save the life of foetus from the moment of conception. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania did not approve this draft law but the prohibition of abortions still is one of the most important issues in the public and among lawyers. There some questions arise. One of the questions is whether the prohibition of abortions wouldn’t mean a violation of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR) and of the other national and international legal acts. The most important question is whether the adoption of the law of abortions prohibition in the Republic of Lithuania wouldn’t infringe woman’s right to inviolability of her private life. The legal regulation of abortions has changed over time. In ancient times an abortion as a miscarriage was permissible. Abortions were prohibited when the first law against abortions was enacted. In Canon Law an abortion is a crime. In Lithuania in the Interwar period abortions were forbidden. The criminalization of abortions caused illegal abortions. Later a few exceptions for the legal termination of pregnancy were affirmed. The first state which legalized abortions was the Soviet Union, so in Lithuania abortions are legal from 1955. After this, many states legalized abortions. When Lithuania became independent, an order of the termination of pregnancy was established. Now in Lithuania the termination of pregnancy on request of the woman is allowable up to the 12th week of pregnancy. Currently, abortions are forbidden only in three member states of the European Union (in Poland, Ireland and Malta) and it shows that many states came to the liberal approach to abortions and the woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy. Only Malta in which is the strongest regulation of abortions has no exceptions for the legal termination of pregnancy. Poland applies mainly exceptions for the legal termination of pregnancy. Legal abortions in this state are allowable when the pregnant woman’s life or health is at risk, when is a high risk that the foetus is damaged, or there are reasonable suspicions that the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. Ireland has also recently established an exception for the legal termination of pregnancy when the mother’s life is at risk, including a threat of suicide. In the United Kingdom is a very liberal legal regulation of abortions protecting the mother’s life and accepting the woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy. Although Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom, it’s legal regulation of abortions is closer to Ireland. In deciding whether abortions in Lithuania should be prohibited, there is a conflict between the woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy and the child’s right to life. Legal acts, protecting the child’s right to life, do not define from which moment the legal protection of human life begins but only a born person can be a legal subject, have passive civil capacity (later – also active civil capacity) and fully enjoy his civil rights. In accordance with scientific approach, the life begins from the moment of birth. The analysis of national and international laws shows that only after the birth a child can have the features which describe the individuality of a person. According to the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the European Commission of Human Rights, the right to life in the ECHR, Article 2 does not include the protection of foetus and the foetus can’t be regarded as a person. This shows that the legal protection of life begins from the moment of birth. The woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy is undoubtedly related to reproductive rights. At the international level the right to decide the number of children as well as the right to independent decisions related to sexual and reproductive health are recognized. Moreover, legal and safe abortion services are ensured in the area of reproductive rights. The Law on Reproductive Health of the Republic of Lithuania was proposed. This law would be opposite to the draft law of abortions prohibition because it would secure the woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy. Although two bills, conflicting to each other, were proposed, according to the international experience, the right to abortion is recognized as one of the most important woman’s reproductive rights which ensure self-determination of the woman. The right to private life and to inviolability of it is one of the basic human rights. The private life is understood as the right to make own decisions related to personal or family life without interference of the other persons or institutions. The prohibition of abortions is also related to violation of the right to freedom of religion. According to national and international laws, protecting the private life, and to the case-law of the ECtHR, the woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy is in the area of the private life. The woman’s constitutional right to abortion was recognized in the Supreme Court of the United States decisions. In cases of the ECtHR was found that in the member states of the European Union, prohibiting abortions with some exceptions for the legal termination of pregnancy (in Ireland and Poland), no clearly defined procedures which help to evaluate if there is a reason for the legal termination of pregnancy. In these cases was found a violation of the ECHR, Article 8 which protects the right to respect for private and family life. It all goes to show that the prohibition of abortions would mean a violation of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and of the other national and international legal acts which protect the private life. The analysis confirms that the adoption of the law of abortions prohibition in the Republic of Lithuania would infringe woman’s right to inviolability of her private life. |
