Find of Foetus Remains Sparks Debate Over Abortion in Kenya

The discovery of the remains of 15 aborted foetuses by a river in Nairobi has led to the arrest of a gynaecologist and triggered an intense debate over abortion, which is illegal in Kenya, as it is in most African countries.

Gynaecologist John Nyamu, who runs two reproductive health clinics in the Kenyan capital, was arrested last week along with two nurses who worked at the health centres.

All three were being held in custody while police investigated whether clinical notes matched documents retrieved from the site where the foetuses were dumped.

The discovery has reignited a controversy which pits women MPs and lobby groups against the Christian churches and a conservative, male-dominated society, where terminating a pregnancy is illegal even in cases of rape or incest.

An estimated 20,000 Kenyan women are admitted to hospital each year to be treated for complications following back street abortions, according to a study sponsored by a US charity, Ipas, which campaigns for women's reproductive rights.

The study indicated that 2,600 Kenyan women die each year because of post-abortion complications.

Jane Onyango, head of litigation at the Federation of Women Lawyers in Kenya, said: "It is an issue that needs to be debated widely. We need to review the law, given the number of unsafe abortions being carried out and the number of women who are dying.

"The public's first reaction to what has happened has been one of horror. But people need to be realistic.

"We are saying that if abortion was legalised, not completely but to cover rape cases, say, we would be able to monitor it, and at least we would know the actual numbers."

Last year, Kenyan women MPs called for abortion to be legalised, saying women resorted to terminations because men were not required to pay for the upkeep of children fathered out of wedlock.

Family planning has been made more difficult by the fact that health centres, which normally distribute them free, have been short of condoms.

At the weekend, church leaders reiterated their opposition to abortion. The head of the Anglican Church in Kenya, Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi, described it as "a great evil".

The Reverend Wesonga Maloba, of the Catholic archdiocese of Nairobi, described the discovery of the foetuses as "the height of human hatred and irresponsibility".

He told the East African Standard: "[It is] a situation where people have relegated human life to the level of trash."

In Africa, only Tunisia, Cape Verde and South Africa provide abortions on request, during the first trimester of pregnancy.