Abstract

CALANDRIA, María Sol  and  LEDESMA PRIETTO, Nadia Florencia. Abortions and Infanticides: Tensions and discussions in modern criminal law (1886-1968). Av. Cesor [online]. 2018, vol.15, n.19, pp.101-128. ISSN 1514-3899.

At the end of the 19th century, there was an important rationalization of punitive practices that resulted in the formation of the new modern criminal system in Argentina. Three aspects of biological reproduction were criminalized: abortion and infanticide, as crimes against people, and the abandonment of children, as crimes against personal guarantees. These reforms demonstrated a particular legal status of women; abortion and infanticide were considered crimes that attacked the interests of the State and altered the presumed maternal instinct. This paper analyzes underlying tensions regarding gender issues in the criminal law about the legal concept of abortion and infanticide to show the changes in the relationship between women and the State. We study parliamentary debates, projects and reforms of the criminal legislation, from its first national sanction in 1886 to 1968, when rape was incorporated as a cause of non-punishable abortion and excluded family members as possible perpetrators of infanticide.

Keywords : Abortion; Infanticide; Sexuality; Criminal law.

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