Committee in Brazilian Chamber of Deputies approves law criminalizing abortion

A commission of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies approved a law on Wednesday, which would make it far more difficult to get an abortion in South America's largest country.

If passed, only the country's judicial system could authorize an abortion and any doctor that even talked about the practice to a woman could face harsh punishment.

A commission of the Chamber of Deputies approved the law, by 37 to 14. This means the legal document will now be sent to Congress, which will discuss it before voting on it.

"Inducing, instigating, or helping in the practice of abortions" would be punished by six months to two years in prison, according to the text, which would also criminalize discussing an abortion with a woman.

Furthermore, if an abortion recommendation is made to a minor, the punishment would be raised to three years in prison.

One of the backers of the bill is the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Eduardo Cunha, who currently stands accused of owning hidden bank accounts in Switzerland and of having received money as part of the Petrobras corruption scandal.

Cunha has long been opposed to any termination of pregnancies and has used his platform to vouch for this policy platform.

The right to abortion has long been controversial although it is legal in cases of rape or if the woman's life is in danger. Enditem