Voice for Choice Coalition calls for decriminalisation of abortion after court judgement

The Voice for Choice Coalition has called for the decriminalisation of abortion as it condemned the court’s judgement of a woman who had terminated her pregnancy. 

On Wednesday, a 28-year-old admitted to having an abortion and was handed a 22-month prison term, suspended for two years.

The Voice for Choice Coalition described the judgement as “systemic state failure” and institutional complicity in endangering women’s health and rights.

The statement denounces the ruling not as an isolated event, but as “a stark, recurring sign” of a broken system that continues to criminalise abortion despite broad political acknowledgement that women should not face prosecution.

“The state has failed to repeal the law and decriminalise abortion,” they reminded, pointing to government’s U-turn on abortion. “Instead, it clings to the hollow claim that ‘women don’t go to prison,’ as though suspended sentences and fear of imprisonment are a form of justice.”

The organisation noted that both government and opposition leaders have publicly stated that women should not be criminalised for seeking or obtaining abortions, stressing that these acknowledgments must now translate into concrete legislative action.

Particular criticism was targeting the Health Ministry and the Malta Medical Council, both of which were accused of maintaining a “dangerous ambiguity” through their silence. 

According to the statement, some doctors, particularly within state-run facilities, still incorrectly believe they are legally required to report patients who have had abortions.

“They are not,” the advocates stress. “But the absence of institutional clarity puts lives at risk.” The lack of clear, binding medical guidelines is viewed by campaigners as a failure of professional ethics and public health leadership.

“Criminalising abortion doesn’t stop abortion. It fuels fear, silences patients, and places already vulnerable people at even greater risk. It denies them dignity, safety, and justice,” the organisation warns.

They call for the full and immediate decriminalisation of abortion, along with a national directive assuring healthcare professionals that reporting abortion-related cases is neither required nor ethical.

“This is a public health emergency. It is the product of political cowardice, institutional paralysis, and a failure of professional ethics,” the statement concludes. “If Malta claims to value equality, healthcare, and social justice, it must act now.”