To save the life of the woman Yes To preserve physical health No* To preserve mental health No Rape or incest No* Foetal impairment No* Economic or social reasons No Available on request No
Additional requirements:
No information is readily available.
* Official interpretation generally permits these grounds.
Government view on fertility level: Too high
Government intervention concerning fertility level: To lower
Government policy on contraceptive use: Direct support provided
Percentage of currently married women using modern contraception (aged 15-49, 1994/95): 13
Total fertility rate (1995-2000): 4.4
Age-specific fertility rate (per 1,000 women aged 15-19, 1995-2000): 70
Government has expressed particular concern about: Morbidity and mortality resulting from induced abortion Yes Complications of childbearing and childbirth Yes
Maternal mortality ratio (per 100,000 live births, 1990): National 1 000 Caribbean 400
Female life expectancy at birth (1995-2000): 56.2
The performance of abortions in Haiti is governed by the provisions of the Haitian Penal Code, which is based on Article 317 of the French Penal Code of 1810. Under the Code, any person performing an abortion is subject to imprisonment, whether the woman consented to the abortion or not. A pregnant woman who performs her own abortion or permits an abortion to be performed on her is also subject to imprisonment. If the abortion is performed by a medical professional, the punishment is forced labor. Nonetheless, under general criminal law principles of necessity, an abortion can be performed to save the life of the pregnant woman. Moreover, there are reports that, in practice, abortions are also performed to preserve the pregnant woman’s physical health and in cases of rape or incest or of foetal impairment.
In the early 1990s, Haiti went through a period of political instability that triggered a four-year long international embargo. During this period, Governmental action was significantly curtailed and reproductive health services were in very short supply. With the return to a constitutional Government in 1995, population and reproductive health became important