Hi, and welcome to Telefem! It’s so nice to meet you! If this is your first time here, we want to tell you that you’re in a safe space, full of trust. We are here to answer all your questions and provide you with trustworthy information regarding safe abortion in Mexico. Let me introduce you to one of our articles, and if you still have questions, feel free to contact us through WhatsApp!
Today, we’re talking about why access to abortion is respecting the reproductive rights of women and all childbearing people. Denying someone the option to make choices about their reproductive life has serious consequences for their human rights.
What’s so important about the right to make choices about our bodies?
To answer this, we need to talk about human and reproductive rights. Human rights belong to every person simply for being human. They secure our ability to thrive physically and emotionally while living responsibly within our communities.1
One key aspect of these rights is “bodily autonomy,” which is the ability to decide what happens to and with our bodies. While not consistently named explicitly in legal texts, autonomy is a foundational principle that supports all human rights. However, from this premise, it is imperative that decisions can be made about one’s body, life project, and future.2
When applied to reproductive and sexual health, bodily autonomy means that women, girls, and childbearing people should be free to make choices about their bodies and lives. If abortion is their choice, they must have access to everything they need to do it, like the correct information, healthcare services, tools, and a violence-free environment to do so if someone is facing an unplanned pregnancy and decides, after thoughtful consideration, not to carry it to term, that is their right.
Accessing a place (or service) that doesn’t judge you for making choices such as abortion, is part of your reproductive rights, and you must wield them for your well-being and health. At Telefem, we connect you with specialists who do not question your decisions or your autonomy.
Abortion, what to do when healthcare services aren’t available?
Sexual and reproductive rights come from human rights. These guarantee that everyone can make informed and voluntary choices about reproduction without discrimination, coercion, or violence.
Reproductive rights include access to:3
- Sexual and reproductive health services
- Contraceptive methods
- Gynecological and obstetric care and attention
- Safe abortion services
Even in parts of Mexico where abortion is legal, challenges do persist. Sometimes, no medically trained professionals are available, or they may only be at clinics and hospitals in large cities, leaving people out in rural or remote areas.
The Lineamiento Técnico para la Atención del Aborto Seguro en México4 makes it clear that telemedicine can help guarantee the right to a safe abortion. These services can be partial or fully remote, including follow-up via phone, messaging, or chat. Patients are guided through every step, and their questions are answered with attention.
This option offers a friendly, respectful, confidential, and comfortable experience. It allows access to more people while protecting privacy since the process can be done from home. It supports autonomy and empowers people to make informed choices about their bodies.
At Telefem, we’re a nonprofit organization that supports your choice not to become a parent. We want you to receive remote medical guidance and safe, specialized care to exercise your right to choose fully. Send us a WhatsApp to get started with a specialist.
When does a safe abortion become your right?
Lessons from Countries With Progressive Laws
It’s critical for laws to protect the right to abortion explicitly. This guarantees people can make decisions about their bodies without stigma, judgment, or harmful policies getting in the way.
Life and health are protected: The health and lives of women and childbearing people are safeguarded by reducing unsafe procedures and complications. Legalizing abortion helps secure equitable access, especially for people in poverty who are affected when abortion is criminalized. Human rights and body autonomy are upheld. Denying access to abortion is a form of gender violence that forces women and childbearing people into parenthood and strips them of control over their own bodies and life strategies.
Can Sex Education Shift Perspectives on Abortion? What the Evidence Shows
There’s an ongoing debate about whether abortion should be discussed in schools. Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) aims to give people knowledge and tools to experience their sexuality in a healthy way, informed from an individual perspective and with others.5
And it is the CSE that has many topics, but abortion also involves areas such as:
1. Preventing unplanned pregnancy. CSE helps people learn about effective contraceptive methods, consent, healthy relationships, and life strategies. It also provides tools to negotiate contraceptive use and decide when and with whom to have sex.
2. Access to accurate, evidence-based information. Understanding that abortion is a personal right and learning how to access safe abortion services helps reduce myths and stigma rooted in fear and shame.
3. Promoting bodily autonomy. CSE empowers people to make decisions without social, religious, or partner pressure.
4. Access to sexual and reproductive healthcare. Informed people know where to seek support, whether to prevent pregnancy or end it safely.
If you know someone going through an unplanned pregnancy, it’s important to be aware of organizations like Telefem. They support women and childbearing people in making their own decisions, offering remote medical guidance nationwide by connecting them with professionals and providing a kit with everything they need.
You’re Not Alone
Keeping in touch with trained professionals makes all the difference. That’s why Telefem is here — to guide and support you. With Telefem, you’ll be safe.
Send us a WhatsApp today — we’re ready to help you.
* This content is for informational purposes only and does not replace professional medical advice.
References:
1. Witker Velásquez JA. Introducción a los derechos humanos. En: Juicios orales y derechos humanos. Colección Juicios Orales 24. [Internet]. 2016. [Visit in March 2025]. Available at: https://archivos.juridicas.unam.mx/www/bjv/libros/9/4262/5.pdf
2. UNFPA. Autonomía corporal: un pilar fundamental para lograr la igualdad de género y el acceso universal a la salud y los derechos sexuales y reproductivos. Resumen técnico del UNFPA. [Internet]. 2021. [Visit in March 2025]. Available at: https://www.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Technical%20Brief_BODILY_AUTONOMY_Spanish_%20May4.pdf
3. Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos. Lo que debes saber sobre… Derechos sexuales y derechos reproductivos. Revista Ciudad Defensora. 2022;16(2):8-9. [Internet]. [Visit in March 2025]. Available at: https://cdhcm.org.mx/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Ciudad-Defensora-16-final.pdf
4. SEGOB. Lineamiento Técnico para el aborto seguro en México. [Internet]. 2022. [Visit in March 2025]. Available at: https://www.gob.mx/cms/uploads/attachment/file/779301/V2-FINAL_Interactivo_22NOV_22-Lineamiento_te_cnico_aborto.pdf
5. Panchaud C. y R.M. Anderson. Hojas informativas sobre conceptos relacionados con la educación integral en sexualidad, los servicios amigables para jóvenes, la igualdad de género y los derechos sexuales. En: Desmitificando datos; Uso de evidencia para mejorar la salud y los derechos sexuales de la gente joven- Juego de herramientas para realizar un taller. [Internet]. 2016. [Visit in March 2025]. Available at: https://www.guttmacher.org/sites/default/files/report_downloads/herramientas-desmitificando-datos-hojas-informativas.pdf