Fatma (name changed to protect her privacy) survived a gruesome abortion after she was forced by her parents to abort a six-week old fetus in her village near Rostaq.
Fatma could not walk for weeks but she considers herself lucky to be alive. However, some other young women were not so fortunate. They lost their lives after primitive and painful abortions carried out by self-taught ‘quacks’, which ended up killing both the mother and the baby. “These are often unmarried women who get pregnant.
Parents always want it removed to save their honour. They would not go to the hospital because abortion is not allowed in Oman. So they visit such ‘quacks’ to perform abortion,” 18-year old Fatma explained, tears welling in her eyes.
But another teenager, Laila (name changed), from the Wilayat of Barka, was not so lucky. She died. Her lifeless body was bundled in an old blanket and hurriedly carried to her home.
The fetus was buried quietly at her own backyard. “Her parents said she was a victim of a hit and run case while she was crossing a road. It was too dark to see the car and the driver never stopped,” Laila’s class mate, Halima, told Times of Oman.
Since abortions that go wrong are hushed up, women who perform them never get caught. They continue the wicked practice undetected by the authorities.
“Parents mourn their losses quietly because they are also involved in the crime. It is a thriving business because abortion fees are not cheap,” Zainab, whose sister got rid of unwanted pregnancy last year, explained.
She said that it can cost as much as RO500 with quacks not guaranteeing success. They also demand cash in advance.
“But if you want your daughter to be considered a good girl, then you would pay. If it goes right, with nobody suspecting anything, then you will quickly find her a husband before she gets herself pregnant again,” Fatma said.
Hospitals too sometime receive badly bleeding girls with their uteruses punctured and their stomachs hastily patched up.
“Some of them we manage to save but others die on the operating tables,” a medical practitioner who identified herself only as Dr S., told Times of Oman.
The common explanation provided by parents, if police are involved, is that “she fell” on a sharp object. Doctors normally would not involve the police because they know it is pointless.
(Names of those quoted in the article have been changed to protect their privacy)
(Follow timesofoman.com on Facebook and on Twitter for updates that you can share with your friends.)
Fatma could not walk for weeks but she considers herself lucky to be alive. However, some other young women were not so fortunate. They lost their lives after primitive and painful abortions carried out by self-taught ‘quacks’, which ended up killing both the mother and the baby. “These are often unmarried women who get pregnant.
Parents always want it removed to save their honour. They would not go to the hospital because abortion is not allowed in Oman. So they visit such ‘quacks’ to perform abortion,” 18-year old Fatma explained, tears welling in her eyes.
But another teenager, Laila (name changed), from the Wilayat of Barka, was not so lucky. She died. Her lifeless body was bundled in an old blanket and hurriedly carried to her home.
The fetus was buried quietly at her own backyard. “Her parents said she was a victim of a hit and run case while she was crossing a road. It was too dark to see the car and the driver never stopped,” Laila’s class mate, Halima, told Times of Oman.
Since abortions that go wrong are hushed up, women who perform them never get caught. They continue the wicked practice undetected by the authorities.
“Parents mourn their losses quietly because they are also involved in the crime. It is a thriving business because abortion fees are not cheap,” Zainab, whose sister got rid of unwanted pregnancy last year, explained.
She said that it can cost as much as RO500 with quacks not guaranteeing success. They also demand cash in advance.
“But if you want your daughter to be considered a good girl, then you would pay. If it goes right, with nobody suspecting anything, then you will quickly find her a husband before she gets herself pregnant again,” Fatma said.
Hospitals too sometime receive badly bleeding girls with their uteruses punctured and their stomachs hastily patched up.
“Some of them we manage to save but others die on the operating tables,” a medical practitioner who identified herself only as Dr S., told Times of Oman.
The common explanation provided by parents, if police are involved, is that “she fell” on a sharp object. Doctors normally would not involve the police because they know it is pointless.
(Names of those quoted in the article have been changed to protect their privacy)
(Follow timesofoman.com on Facebook and on Twitter for updates that you can share with your friends.)
