Rights watchdog faults Malta for abortion, journalist safety

VALLETTA, Malta (AP) — A European human rights watchdog recommended on Monday that Malta legalize abortion, improve gender equality and implement reforms to protect journalists, adding another international voice of criticism to the laws and culture on the Mediterranean island nation.

The Council of Europe's rights commissioner, Dunja Mijatović, made an initial set of recommendations following her recent visit to Malta, during which she met with the prime minister, other ministers and civil society groups. A final report is expected later.

Malta, an overwhelmingly Roman Catholic European Union member, is one of the few Western states that has a total ban on abortion, after the republic of San Marino recently decriminalized it.

Mijatovic called on Maltese authorities to urgently repeal legal provisions criminalizing the procedure and to ensure women’s access to sexual and reproductive health care, including safe and legal access to abortion.

Earlier this year, an independent lawmaker recommended abortion be decriminalized, sparking some debate though the initiative didn't gain much traction. Last month, Prime Minister Robert Abela said that discussion should continue, but shouldn't be politicized.

Mihatovic welcomed the debate but said the continued criminalization and stigmatization of abortion not only puts Maltese women’s health at risk, “but also affects their equal enjoyment of other human rights.”

She also called for Malta to implement mandatory sexual education and take measures to improve gender equality. There is a need, she said in a statement, to “overcome prejudices and traditional and all other practices based on the idea of the inferiority of women or on stereotyped roles for men and women."

The commissioner also referred to the conclusions of a public...