Autonomy, Abortion and Pain Criteria

Abstract

Pro-life and pro-choice groups are the main actors in the current abortion debate. On the one hand, the defenders of women’s rights consider the issue as a matter of freedom and argue against bans on abortion practice. On the other hand, the fetal rights defenders are absolutely against abortion in any case and consider abortion a method of killing an innocent human being. Both sides use the scientific developments to influence public opinion. The core of this semi-scientific debate today depends on the question “When does human life begin?” Participants aspire to shape the law concerning abortion according to their answer to this question. Yet, this approach leads to deadlocks in theory and practice, because it is impossible to accept the legal personality of the fetus or to remove all the bans on abortion. However, it may be possible to find a solution within the legal system itself by using scientific knowledge, but without establishing it on a human “rights” base. This paper argues that using pain as a criterion may be a promising point of compromise.