Turkish women rally against plans to restrict access to abortion

Istanbul, Turkey -- Hundreds of women gathered on Sunday in Istanbul in the latest demonstration against the religiously conservative ruling party's plans to restrict access to abortion.

Last month Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan catapulted the issue to forefront of public debate in Turkey when he called abortion "murder."

A day later, he amplified the controversy by equating a botched military operation in Uludere with abortion. The Uludere massacre claimed the lives of 34 Kurds in southeastern Turkey when faulty intelligence led to an airstrike on a group of smugglers crossing the Turkish- Iraqi border.

After Erdogan's comment, Turkish Health Minister Recep Akdag issued a statement indicating that he would be submitting a proposal to lawmakers in the upcoming month, raising fears that the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, was preparing to introduce legislation to curb, if not fully block, access to abortion. (...)