957 students in Malta said the punishment of up to three years’ imprisonment for a woman who has an abortion should be removed from the law. Out of 1,074 respondents, just 137 disagreed with this prompt.
Similarly, 824 respondents agreed that punishing healthcare professionals for assisting an abortion with up to four years in prison should be removed from the law, while 159 disagreed and the remainder did not express an opinion.
The findings form part of a survey conducted by Doctors for Choice examining the attitudes and opinions of students at the University of Malta and MCAST on abortion. Overall, the results indicate strong student support for reforming Malta’s strict abortion laws, which currently criminalise both women and healthcare professionals.
The survey was conducted between September 2021 and July 2022 among students over the age of 18 enrolled at the University of Malta or MCAST during the 2021/2022 academic year.
Most respondents were aged between 18 and 24, with women accounting for around two-thirds of participants. While a majority identified as Catholic, more than half said religion was either not important or not applicable in their lives.
Beyond criminal penalties, students also expressed concern about the wider impact of Malta’s total abortion ban. A large majority agreed that a complete ban can lead to potentially unsafe abortion practices, and many felt the law discriminates between women who can afford to travel abroad for abortion care and those who cannot.
When asked about personal beliefs, most respondents rejected the idea that women who access abortion should face criminal proceedings, regardless of the circumstances.
At the same time, many students indicated that it is possible to be personally opposed to abortion while still supporting a woman’s right to choose.
Students were also asked about the circumstances in which abortion should be legal. The highest levels of support were recorded for cases where a woman’s life is at risk, in instances of rape or incest, and in cases involving non-viable foetal anomalies. Support notably decreased when it came to abortions requested for social or economic reasons or without the need to provide a reason, reflecting a broader range of views on these scenarios.
The survey further found strong backing for improved education on abortion. A majority of respondents agreed that healthcare students should receive more training on abortion-related issues, including medical techniques and counselling.
Do you think the three-year abortion penalty should be removed from Malta’s criminal law?
