CAN a campaign to legalise abortion succeed in a country that has women's •movement, abortion is a multi-million pound Dustless, where the largest party of the left will not support the campaign, and where the right is trying to cut back on what rights women have already?
In Portugal, the campaign for abortion and contraception (CNAC) is trying:
The need is clear, Margarida Sousa, a CNAC organiser Time Revolutionary Party (the International's organisation Portugal).
Impossible 'We say there are 180,000 illegal abortions a year, but it is impossible to know the real number. A lot of women die — 2,000 deaths a year are registered, but many home because they don't dare go to a doctor or they think it is normal to have a bad infection.' Contraception is legal, but only 137,000 women year consultations fewer than number of abortions!
CNAC only began early this year, and in a short time has established groups in Lisbon, Oporto, Coimbra, Setubal. The Antonia Palla, the journalist recently film on abortion, issue considerable publicity.
To build the campaign, CNAC has held many local meetings as well Oporta, participated in May Day marches, and conducted a countertribunalin Lisbon. Most of the parties no where illegal national according to Socialist Fourth in more die at have the trial of Maria has given the Portuguese bortion campaign. on the far left are represented on CNAC, as are unions workers and domestic servants.
Although strong methods of organisation problems at meetings, produced a demands: legal woman's right to choose, and freely available contraception and information about contraception.
It has, HOweves, difficult to involve women building of a mass movement, despite the fact that most constant fear of every month of their working lives, and have the threat of a terrible operation in poor conditions always hanging over their heads.
Unlike the Campaign in Britain, nearly all of the women (and men) in CNAC represent "political parties, there is always a struggle between representing the party abortion and their own demands as women. This is a particular problem because all the party leaderships are dominated by men.
Machismo For example, explained Sousa, 'we have been to meetings in two political parties where men refused to bring up CNAC because they said it was irrelevant, because the purpose of the meeting was imperialism. attitude is imperialism against us. fact that 'the which has the support number of working people, does not consider abortion issue', said Sousa. conference of women workers of the union federation) discussion of abortion was blocked, of textile journalists' differences in sull caust CNAC has platform of « DOMICI proved very change this.' in the women are in getting pregnant National Abortion even though it was raised by the " union.
But the existence of CNAC may be changing the nature of the debate Sousa feels. 'Women who have neve spoken in public before start now, and it provokes a change in their lives. Machismo is very strong in Portugal, and has never been questioned — ever in the parties. But the involvement of women on this work is starting to