Efforts to reduce the 48-hour waiting period before a woman can proceed after making a request for an abortion have been stalled by the failure to reconstitute the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Advisory Board for almost two years, according to attorney and human rights activist Sadie Amin.
Amin made the claim during a virtual panel discussion on “Sexual and Reproductive Health – Why is it Important to Gender Equality?” which was hosted last Wednesday by the Women and Gender Equality Commission.
Amin said while the Board, on which she sat as a representative of the Guyana Association of Women Lawyers (GAWL) until its life came to an end at the end of 2020, made progress on addressing the waiting period, which is stipulated in the regulations of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.
