SW News: San Marino, which is one of the four European countries where abortion is illegal, is set to hold a referendum on legalizing the termination of pregnancy. On Sunday, September 26, citizens of San Marino will cast their vote to decide if abortion is to be allowed up to 12 weeks.

Citizens will also vote on allowing abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy in case of anomalies and malformations of the fetus that pose a serious threat to the health of the mother. The tiny landlocked nation inside Italy with about 33,000 people is one of the strongest Catholic nations, and abortion has been illegal in the country for the past 156 years.

The 1865 law implemented an absolute ban on abortion. Even helping a woman get an abortion is a criminal offense and is punishable with three to six years imprisonment. Currently, to obtain an abortion, women have to travel to neighboring Italy. Even though attempts to legalize abortion have gained momentum for the past two decades, all attempts were vetoed by successive governments. The current Christian Democratic Party has also called on citizens to vote no on the referendum.

Campaigning for the right to life of the most vulnerable, the unborn, Dr. Adolfo Morganti of Comitato Uno di Noi (“One of Us Committee”) cautioned about the possibility of “abortion tourism”. He also expressed concern that abortion legalization might adversely affect the already low birth rate in the country, which is currently 1.2 children per woman. Moreover, San Marino has a strong welfare system that provides aid to pregnant women in need.

Tradition says that St Marinus founded a Christian community here in the fourth century that later became the city-state of San Marino.