Meet the Ghanaian awarded for advocating safe abortions

Ghanaian doctor Dr. Eunice Brookman-Amissah has received the prestigious Right Livelihood Award, often referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize," for her groundbreaking work in championing women's reproductive rights in Africa and advocating for liberalized abortion laws, thereby improving access to safe abortions.

Dr. Brookman-Amissah hopes this recognition will shed light on the critical issue of unsafe abortions, particularly in Africa.

In an interview with the BBC, Dr. Brookman-Amissah expressed her deep appreciation for being honored with the award and shared her aspiration for this achievement to bolster efforts to protect the rights of women who continue to suffer due to "unsafe abortions, resulting in fatalities every day."

Abortion remains a contentious and stigmatized subject in many African countries, with criminalization being prevalent.

This, in turn, deters women from seeking necessary medical assistance when faced with the decision.

Dr. Brookman-Amissah highlighted the critical issue of the unavailability of required services even in cases where the law permits safe abortions, contributing to unnecessary loss of life and long-term disabilities.

She recounted a poignant personal experience that drove her commitment to this cause.

A 14-year-old girl sought her help for a pregnancy termination, and tragically, the girl passed away two days later from a botched abortion. Dr. Brookman-Amissah expressed her profound regret over this incident, saying, "to my eternal shame."

This heart-wrenching event compelled her to delve into Ghana's abortion laws, discovering that the young girl could have been saved since her pregnancy resulted from statutory rape, a circumstance that legally allowed for a safe abortion.

“From there on, I decided that I would find out what abortion law in my country says. I found out that she could have been saved because as a 14-year-old she had been statutory-raped and the law allowed for safe abortion for cases of rape,” she said.

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