Argentina's parliament revisits debate on abortion law

Hundreds of thousands of Argentines are set to take to the streets on Wednesday, wearing green scarves to demonstrate their support for legalizing abortion.

Those involved in the movement hope that a new law will soon be passed. Seven similar bills were presented in parliament in the past — none of them came to fruition.

On Wednesday, the eighth such debate will take place. Since 1921, abortion has only been legal in Argentina in cases in which the life of the mother is in danger or when the pregnancy is the result of rape. For years, all attempts to liberalize the law have failed.

In 2005, an initiative of more than 70 organizations began advocating for a woman's right to legal, safe and free abortion. For most supporters, the seventh attempt to change the law looked like victory.

In June 2018, the lower house of Argentina's parliament passed a bill brought forth by the initiative. Yet joy over the decision was fleeting. Just three months later, the upper house, the Senate, struck down the bill — by a margin of seven votes.

Now, one year on, the movement is taking another shot at victory with a slightly modified version of the 2018 bill.