However, the 2010 constitution, combined with a wider body of law, does allow abortion when “the life or health of the mother is in danger” or when the pregnancy has resulted from rape or incest.
It was this group that led the debate to help draft the 2010 constitution, which for the first time in the country’s history provided a legal, albeit limited, avenue for abortion.
“Unsafe abortion is rampant in Kenya,” he says, arguing that poor women suffer the most as safe terminations are not available in public hospitals because of the uncertainty and lack of guidelines.
“I think it’s about time that we understand the emotional burden of not having access to family planning, not empowering the woman so that she knows that she doesn’t have to become a baby-producing machine.”
Ms Passaris says that while the 2010 constitution legalised abortion in certain circumstances, she argues that the fear around it restricts women’s access to health services, particularly for those from poorer communities.
In March 2022, Kenya’s High Court affirmed abortion as a fundamental right under the terms of constitution and ruled that arbitrary arrests were illegal, but it has done little to allay the fears of some women, like Edith.
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