Pregnancy termination and the law in Nigeria

Abstract

Abortion in Nigeria is illegal and carries a heavy jail sentence--up to 14 years imprisonment--unless it is performed to save the life of the pregnant woman. Nevertheless, a large number of clandestine abortions continue to be carried out regularly, often with dire consequences for the lives and health of the women involved. This article reviews abortion legislation in Nigeria, examines court decisions on the subject, and presents the results of a survey conducted on the incidence of abortion in the country. A case is made for revising existing abortion laws. A brief look is taken at the various indications for abortion that might be adopted and a proposal is made for a new abortion policy in Nigeria in the light of the country's recently adopted population policy.

PIP: In Nigeria, abortion is illegal and carries a stiff jail sentence, up to 14 years, unless done to save the life of the pregnant woman. Abortion legislation in Nigeria and court decisions on the subject are examined. Abortion is governed by the Criminal Code in the southern states, and the Penal Code in the northern states. In "R v. Idiong and Umo," the 2 defendants had been convicted of murder on the grounds that the 1st accused had obtained the services of the 2nd accused, a native doctor, to give native medicine to bring about an abortion. The abortion resulted in the woman's death. Therefore the 1st accused was party to the crime. The West African Court of Appeal found that the 2nd accused had acted innocently believing that the medicine would relieve pain that the dead woman suffered from a retained placenta. He gave an abortifacient for expulsion of the placenta. He was found "not guilty" of murder and manslaughter. The 1st accused was found criminally responsible for causing the abortion, but was found not guilty of murder. He was guilty of manslaughter, however. In 1981, the Nigerian Society for Gynecology and Obstetrics sponsored a Termination of Pregnancy Bill in the House of Representatives. However, pressure groups lobbied against it, and the bill did not pass. In 1984, a survey was done to assess incidence of abortion. Representative samples were taken from the north and the south. The capital cities of 8 different states were covered. In 5 sample hospitals within the Lagos Metropolis in Lagos State, 125 abortions or treatments of incomplete abortions were recorded within a month. In 4 representative hospitals from Oyo State, 81 abortions or corrections of incomplete abortions were recorded within 1 month. In the northern state of Kaduna, information was very difficult to obtain. At one of the University Teaching Hospitals in Zaria, records showed there were 103 treatments of incomplete abortions during the preceding year. The usual approach to revising abortion laws has been to expand or extend the grounds for legal abortion. In some jurisdictions, courts have widened the ground by adopting the decision that life includes mental and physical health. Abortion may be possible for eugenic reasons. In February, 1988, the Nigerian government announced its adoption of a population policy; a new abortion policy should take this into consideration.