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Abstract

Since Spain introduced Catholicism in Mexico and the Philippines by way of violent colonization, the religious institution has fulfilled an enormous role in the two countries' governance. When considering reproductive justice, it is evident that the Mexican and Philippine governments' relationships with Catholicism have shaped the way political and judicial structures grant access to, interpret, and govern the right to abortion. With Catholicism's influence in government, how has one country decriminalized abortion and the other continues to levy criminal prosecution against it?

The 2023 decision from Mexico's Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación decriminalizing abortion nationwide tracks a greater movement throughout Latin America to institutionalize abortion and reproductive rights for women. An amalgamation of case law and an inflexible separation of Church and State helped lay the foundation for the Court's decision-in spite of Catholicism's strong hand in the nation's history.

In the Philippines, a country thousands of miles away from Mexico, abortion remains a criminal act enshrined in its constitution and Penal Code. The prohibition on abortion is justified by a national identity largely inextricable from the Church. In recent years, however, with the government distancing itself from the Church and a growing grassroots movement for reproductive rights, the Philippines may soon face a similar reckoning toward greater reproductive rights like the one that has unfolded in Mexico.

Political and legal structures governing reproductive justice are strong forces within these two countries. Their coalescence with the institution of Catholicism-not always direct or welcome-produces legislation and judicial outcomes that formatively affect individuals who have the ability to become pregnant. This article analyzes how one country with its deep ties to Catholicism has decriminalized abortion altogether and how another continues to face prominent hurdles in doing so. The analysis is set in the context of the nations' colonialist history, religious indoctrination within government (or lack thereof), and the political movements that call for abortion and reproductive rights.

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