The Madrid city government, led by the Popular Party (PP) of José Luis Martínez-Almeida, has approved a Vox proposal requiring social workers to inform women seeking abortions about potential psychological consequences, including depression, alcoholism, anorexia, and bulimia—a cluster of symptoms referred to as 'post-abortion syndrome.' The measure has ignited a fierce debate over women's reproductive rights and the role of government in personal medical decisions, pitting feminist activists against conservative voices in a polarized political landscape.
Feminist activist Carla Galeote has vehemently opposed the initiative, arguing that women do not need oversight when deciding to abort and that it is a personal choice no one else should dictate. She emphasized the need to safeguard abortion rights, warning that if Vox ever reaches the national government, women's rights could be rolled back. In contrast, Catholic influencer Carla Restoy contends that legal rights do not equate to moral good, citing historical examples where rights were later deemed genocidal. Restoy insists post-abortion syndrome exists and questions why the left does not support women and motherhood more robustly.
The controversy highlights internal tensions within the PP, as its national leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, stated two years ago that 'in no place governed by the PP can a woman be coerced during her pregnancy.' Feijóo's remarks, made during a dispute over Vox's push for women in Castilla y León to hear the fetal heartbeat before aborting, clash with the Madrid PP's current support for Vox's initiative. Vox councilor Carla Toscano outlined the intended information, which includes depression, guilt, isolation, recurrent images, nightmares, insomnia, and psychiatric hospitalization rates allegedly double those of women who have not aborted, to be provided verbally and in writing at municipal health centers and websites.
In a recent shift, Mayor Almeida acknowledged that 'post-abortion syndrome is not a scientifically recognized category' but maintained support for the Vox-backed measure, clarifying that information would be voluntary and determined by Madrid City Council professionals, not Vox or the PP. He stressed that women would not be forced to receive information and that the initiative aims to offer details on abortion's potential consequences as a surgical procedure, distancing from Vox's argumentation while upholding the provision of information. The move underscores the political balancing act in Madrid's coalition governance, as the PP navigates alliances with its far-right partner amid ongoing societal divisions over reproductive rights.
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