Switzerland: heading towards a ban on gender-related abortion?

Publié le 9 Oct, 2014

The Swiss Science Commission unanimously recommended the adoption of a State Council(1) motion aimed at toughening up legislation relating to premature prenatal analyses to ban gender-related abortions (Gènéthique press review on September 17th, 2014). 

 

Currently, although the law “clearly authorises controls to determine the gender“, it is only for diagnostic purposes. However, the Lematin.ch website states that this legislation can be “twisted, especially thanks to non-invasive tests carried out from the 9th week of pregnancy“. The parents therefore “still have time to decide on a legal abortion before the 12th week“. 

 

The only solution is to “ban laboratories from supplying such information if it is not relevant for the detection of anomalies“. However, very often, non-invasive prenatal tests are carried out in foreign laboratories and are not, therefore, subject to Swiss law. 

  

1. The national commissions are formed from the Swiss Federal Assembly, which comprises the National Council, State Council and Upper and Lower Chambers of the Federal Assembly. 

Lematin.ch 09/10/2014

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