Decriminalisation of abortion will be referred to the Queensland Law Reform Commission (QLRC) by the Palaszczuk Labor government after independent MP Rob Pyne withdrew his private member's bills on the issue.
The bills were due to be debated on March 1 but Pyne withdrew them the day before 鈥 to the disappointment of many pro-choice activists 鈥 when it became clear they faced defeat in the parliament.
More than 400 people rallied for abortion rights outside the Queensland parliament on February 16 in the lead up to a March 1 debate on decriminalising abortion in the state.
One feature of the rally was the strong support by unionists speaking out in favour of the campaign demands. General secretary of the Queensland Council of Unions Ros McLennan gave a powerful speech criticising the 鈥渨eak-kneed hand-wringing and flip flopping鈥 of the state's politicians when the 鈥渞ight thing to do is just so clear鈥.
More than 50,000 donations have been made to Planned Parenthood, a US non-profit group promoting reproductive health, in the name of anti-choice Vice President-elect Mike Pence in a show of creative resistance and organising against the incoming Donald Trump administration.
Wearing black as a symbol of mourning for lost reproductive rights, tens of thousands of women in Poland and beyond took to the streets on October 3 to protest a聽.
Tens of thousands marched through Dublin on September 24 calling for abortion rights, reported the next day.聽Marchers carried banners calling on the Irish government to 鈥渞epeal the 8th,鈥 the amendment to the Irish constitution which gives foetuses a 鈥渞ight to life鈥 deemed equal with that of pregnant women, rendering almost all abortions illegal.
Greens MLC and spokesperson for women Mehreen Faruqi launched her bill to remove abortion from the NSW Crimes Act on September 28, International Day of Action for Access to Safe and Legal Abortion. Faruqi said that there needed to be a campaign to 鈥渂ust the myths surrounding abortion鈥.
