Zambia woman freed after denied abortion and prison sentence

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Violet Zulu, a house cleaner in Zambia, says she was let down at every step after becoming pregnant: she says a partner abandoned her, a health service denied her what she considered a legal abortion, and a justice system sent her to maximum-security prison after she admitted procuring her own abortion. Zulu, now 26, was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2024 after representing herself in court, according to The Associated Press. She was freed last month after international rights groups helped her file an appeal, AP reported.

Zulu told AP she tried first to access legal abortion services at a public clinic that should have given her advice or services but instead turned her away. She then said she approached a private pharmacy that asked for 800 Zambian kwacha, which AP reported as about $43—described as roughly a month’s salary for Zulu. AP reported that Zulu was already struggling to feed her two young sons and sometimes begged food from relatives.

In AP’s account, Zulu said she made the decision to drink an herbal concoction she prepared herself, describing it as something known for terminating pregnancies, after what she called despair and a fear that having another child would make it harder for the boys to eat. She told AP: “I never wanted to abort my pregnancy, but it is the circumstances at home that forced me to do it,” adding that she was scared when she took the concoction but “didn’t really care what would happen to me.”

Zulu said her account continued into what she described as a chain of events after she took the concoction. She told AP that she delivered the fetus in a toilet, placed it in a sack, and dropped it in a nearby stream. Zulu told AP that she confided in a friend, but she said word spread and neighbors reported her to police.

AP also reported that Zulu left school in the eighth grade and said she was never offered free legal counsel, despite the right to request it. She said she represented herself in court and pleaded guilty to procuring her own abortion, telling AP she did not understand the legality of abortion and thought she would receive a warning.

Rights groups and advocates said Zulu’s case reflected failures that went beyond what the prison sentence punished. Rosemary Kirui, a legal adviser for the Center for Reproductive Rights, which campaigned for Zulu’s release and helped with the appeal, said: “This is a system that failed Violet.” Kirui added that it was not that Zulu did not try, but that she could not afford the services and should still be able to access them as a citizen of Zambia, AP reported.

Sharon Williams, country director for Women and Law in Southern Africa, told AP Zulu should have been eligible for a free abortion under a provision that allows doctors in Zambia to consider risks to the well-being of her existing children. AP reported that Williams said Zulu was not aware of that, largely because of secrecy, stigma, and shame around abortion that Williams said Zambia’s public health system does not advertise. Williams also said Zambia has legalized abortion while defining itself in its constitution as strongly Christian, and she said that combination helps explain why access can remain difficult.

AP reported that Zambia’s Health Ministry did not respond to questions about Zulu’s case. Williams said Zulu’s case should lead to a national conversation about whether authorities should educate communities about the legal right to abortion. “I think now that we have this judgment, we’re ready for the conversation,” Williams said, according to AP.

The case also comes amid broader advocacy warnings about unsafe abortion where legal services are out of reach. Activists told AP that desperate women can turn to unsafe abortions, and that Africa and Latin America have the highest proportions of unsafe abortions. AP reported that the World Health Organization estimated that about 75% of all abortions in Africa are unsafe. AP also cited a 2019 report from the Guttmacher Institute that estimated more than 6 million unsafe abortions per year in sub-Saharan Africa and described Zambia’s abortion law as a “paper law” rather than one that ensures widespread access.

AP placed Zulu’s situation in contrast with South Africa, where abortion has been legal for nearly 30 years under certain conditions. AP reported that abortion is allowed on request before 13 weeks and for several reasons before 21 weeks, but studies estimate only 7% of public health facilities offer abortion services there. AP said a 2023 case involving a 14-year-old whose request was denied three times by health workers led to an urgent court order; the judge directed that she be allowed to have an abortion, and AP reported it was performed on the last day eligible by law.

AP said Zulu told the outlet she still felt bad about what she did, but she must now provide for her sons. She told AP she was looking for work again.