The Right to Abortion in International Human Rights Law

ABSTRACT: This article demonstrates there is a right to abortion in international human rights law. Using systematic analysis of documents from international human rights bodies, it shows that, through a constellation of rights, international human rights law recognizes a right to abortion. It establishes that (i) criminal regulation of abortion results in serious violations of human rights; (ii) making abortion available on request is the optimal approach to rights-compliant regulation; (iii) states are obliged to remove barriers to abortion access in law and in practice; and (iv) the right to abortion requires both individual and general remedies for denials of access.