Several World Leaders Call Overturning Roe ‘Setback’ For Women’s Rights Globally

As many women in the United States come to terms with the Supreme Court of the United States overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling which ended federal right to access to abortion.

Now states and elected representatives will decide whether to provide safe and legal access to abortion to women.

“The Constitution does not prohibit the citizens of each State from regulating or prohibiting abortion. Roe and Casey arrogated that authority. We now overrule those decisions and return that authority to the people and their elected representatives,” US Supreme Court Judge Samuel Alito said after the landmark ruling was overturned.

As soon as the ruling was overturned, both pro-life (activists who demanded abortion be banned in the United States) and pro-choice (activists who believe women have the final authority to decide what they should do with their bodies) took to the streets and marched in front of the Supreme Court either to protest or to celebrate.

Though numbers from surveys and polls suggest that a majority of Americans believe that it is a woman’s choice whether to have or not have children.

However, the overturning of the ruling raised eyebrows internationally as well. World leaders have expressed concern, with some even siding with pro-choice supporters, who say the overturning of Roe is an attack on the women of the United States.

UK PM Boris Johnson said it is a big step backwards. “I’ve got to tell you, I think it’s a big step backwards,” Johnson said. He said the UK implements laws which protect a woman’s right to choose.

“I’ve always believed in a woman’s right to choose and I stick to that view and that’s why the UK has the laws that it does and actually, if you look, we recently took steps to make sure that those laws were enforced throughout the whole of the UK,” Boris Johnson said.

French president Emmanuel Macron in a tweet expressed his solidarity with pro-choice supporters and the women of America.

“Abortion is a fundamental right for all women. It must be protected. I express my solidarity with the women whose freedoms are today challenged by the Supreme Court of the United States of America,” Macron said in a tweet.

Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo said the overturning of Roe v. Wade will only lead to unsafe abortions. “Very concerned about implications of [the US Supreme Court] decision on #RoeVWade and the signal it sends to the world. Banning abortion never leads to fewer abortions, only to more unsafe abortions,” Croo said.

Neighboring nation Canada also questioned the US Supreme Court over the overturning of the landmark law. “The news coming out of the United States is horrific…No government, politician, or man should tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her body. I want women in Canada to know that we will always stand up for your right to choose,” Trudeau was quoted as saying.

The United Nations also said the decision taken by the SCOTUS was a setback for women’s rights. “It’s also important to note that restricting access to abortion does not prevent people from seeking abortion; it only makes it more deadly,” UN Secretary General spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State quickly jumped to control damage on the international stage. “Under this Administration, the State Department will remain fully committed to helping provide access to reproductive health services and advancing reproductive rights around the world,” Blinken said in a statement.

The Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life, Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro’s son Flávio Bolsonaro and members of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) supported the ruling.

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