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The
Bundestag lower house of parliament voted to scrap the law,
meaning doctors are now allowed to give out additional
information about abortions without fear of prosecution.
Under the law, doctors in Germany had been allowed to say that
they offered termination of pregnancies but they were not
allowed to give any further details on the procedures involved.
Technically, abortion is illegal altogether in Germany. However,
it is allowed under certain circumstances, and the procedure
must be performed within 12 weeks of conception.
"For almost a century, doctors have been forbidden and
punishable by penalty from providing factual information about
methods and possible risks to women who are considering
terminating a pregnancy," Justice Minister Marco Buschmann said
in a statement.
"Today, this time of distrust in women and distrust in doctors
is coming to an end."
Any criminal court sentences handed down based on the law since
October 1990 will also be repealed, and any ongoing proceedings
will be discontinued.
The new government had laid out its plans to eliminate the law
in the coalition agreement signed in November.
(Reporting by Miranda Murray; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
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