Why do women travel from the Maldives to India for abortion and what are their options?
Why do patients travel from the Maldives to India for abortion and what are their options?
An archipelago of 1190 coral islands, Maldives is the smallest Asian country located in the Indian ocean. It has been the choicest travel destination but residents face massive challenges in availing safe abortions.
The coarse population dispersal across all the islands makes access to basic health care facilities at affordable prices very difficult. Access to Comprehensive abortion care (CAC) services is the right of every woman. But women in countries like the Maldives have very limited to zero access to CAC.
The rate of unwanted pregnancies is quite high in southeast Asian nations and women of Maldives too face similar situations due to inadequate knowledge and availability of contraceptive methods. Their situations further worsen due to restricted abortion policies of the country. The biggest rescue for such women has been to avail medical abortion tourism facility and travel to the nearest country with flexible abortion laws.
With liberal abortion laws and high-quality and safe medical facilities for abortion in India for foreigners, it has been the nearest, safest and the preferred choice among women of Maldives.