​ Argentina elects new pro-life president

Last Sunday, the 19th of November, Argentina elected Javier Milei as their new president. 

The good news is that the new Argentinian president vowed that, should he be elected, he would hold a referendum regarding Argentina’s abortion laws.

In 2020, Argentina’s senate passed a bill which legalised abortion until 14 weeks gestation, with exceptions in cases of rape or if the pregnancy is a risk to the mother’s health. 

A few days prior to Milei being elected as president, he and Victoria Villarruel, who has since become the vice president-elect of Argentina, made it known that they "are both pro-life" and that "there has to be a discussion" about the pro-abortion bill that the Argentine Congress passed in December 2020. 

Villarruel spoke on Argentinian TV program, TV program “Solo Una Vuelta Más” (“Just One More Turn”), about the abortion legislation in Argentina. She stated that the discussion on the matter should “take place on a scientific basis and serious arguments and not as ideological as those that coloured the promulgation of the law.” She continued “Today you find women who are aborting children at term. It seems to me that that’s [not the way it ought to be]” 

Milei, is a 53 year old self described “anarcho-capitalist”, won the election with 55.7% of the vote to Sergio Massa, who received 44.3%.

In a statement regarding a potential repeal of the current laws on abortion in Argentina, Milei said “When you construct on the basis of an incorrect moral principle, the result is filth. How can being able to kill other human beings be a right gained? As a liberal, I believe in the unrestricted right to life based on the defence of life, liberty and property. I defend life, biology says that life begins with conception.”

In addition to congratulating Milei, Félix Maradiaga, who was formerly a presidential candidate in Nicaragua and is the president of the Foundation for a Free Nicaragua, said that the election of Milei as president is “a breath of fresh air in the Americas” and highlighted that this achievement “heralds better times in the face of the absurdities of socialism that has so impoverished Argentines and other nations on the continent.” 

Meanwhile, those who are pro-abortion are unhappy with this election and have made it known. In an article published by The Guardian in October, just a month before Milei’s victory, the statements of women who attended a protest held outside Argentina’s National Congress are shared. Marilyna, 28, claimed “We are fighting against the presidential candidates who threaten the rights of women''

The issue with such a statement is that people who are in support of abortion view the act as simply a human right. Ending the life of an innocent, unborn child is amoral and should never be considered a “right”. With hope, Milei will help bring this to light and make abortion unthinkable in Argentina.

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Photo Credit: Spotlight Images Agency / Shutterstock

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