Additional information
by Camilla Pickles (Author)
South African law remains relatively silent on the legal aspects of pregnancy,
and legal commentary is rather scarce too. While there have been attempts
to address the gaps in the law in relation to specifi c issues in pregnancy, these
attempts have usually favoured the individual protection of the unborn at
the expense of pregnant women's agency and rights, which has given rise
to a tension between female reproductive autonomy and foetal interests.
In Pregnancy Law in South Africa, the author explores the question of whether
it is possible to regard pregnancy in law as embodying both women and
the unborn and whether the pregnancy can be construed in a way that it
does not come to be framed as an adversarial relationship.
Pregnancy Law in South Africa focuses on the issues of prenatal
substance abuse, termination of pregnancy, violence that terminates
a pregnancy, and the extension of legal personhood to the unborn.
The author argues that pregnancy-related issues will never be
adequately resolved unless the potential for an adversarial
pregnancy relationship is removed. She proposes a relational
approach to pregnancy, centred on fostering relationships, in
order to eliminate the potential for tension. The author contends
further that a relational approach encourages imaginative
and constructive possibilities for law reform efforts without
sacrifi cing women's reproductive autonomy and rights or the
recognition of the unborn.
Pregnancy Law in South Africa provides a sound theoretical
approach to pregnancy in law and its recommendations seek
to promote healthy, rights-affi rming pregnancies.
