"Is this Doctors for Choice? I need to know how I can get some abortion pills." A tremulous voice was at the other end of the line. She barely wanted to give me any information, like the date of her last period, in case I could somehow decipher her identity. I told her Women on Web send abortion pills to women in Malta by post but she should remember that abortion is illegal under all circumstances.

I waited for the questions which women invariably ask at this point. "What if I develop complications and need to go to hospital? Will the doctors know I've taken abortion pills? What if they report me to the police?" This is a common fear of women who have a medical abortion illegally in Malta, and understandably so. The majority of women who have abortions already have children. Their primary concern is ending up in prison and being unable to take care of their young ones.

Women need abortions for a variety of reasons. Some are at risk of a life-threatening complication from pregnancy.  Others have learned that the fetus they're carrying will only live a few days and die. Every time someone congratulates them on their pregnancy they must either thank them through clenched teeth or disclose the tragedy that awaits them. Yet others have become pregnant after being raped by their violent partner and know that delivering this fetus will mean remaining tied to an abusive man for the next 18 years. I personally know of at least two women who considered taking their own lives over continuing their pregnancy. Thankfully, one miscarried, the other went abroad for a surgical abortion.

Is it any wonder that women opt for an abortion at all costs? For them, it boils down to two options: take care of their health and commit a crime, or risk their health - sometimes even their lives - and deliver. Forcing women to choose between their health and the law is hardly fair. 

As things currently stand in Malta, it's almost as though women are set up to become pregnant and deliver. Our schools do not have a comprehensive, unified sexual health curriculum, limiting young people's knowledge on how to protect themselves from unintended pregnancy. (The Family Planning Advisory Service helpline www.fpas.mt seeks to address the frightening paucity of sexual and reproductive health information available.) Furthermore, all contraceptives must be paid for out-of-pocket and are quite expensive. Buying the morning-after pill is fettered with red tape, limiting access. And finally, abortion is illegal under all circumstances in Malta. Once a woman becomes pregnant, she is forced by the state to continue that pregnancy at all costs.

The least we can do is decriminalise abortion and stop making women fear a prison sentence for taking control of their lives. Decriminalisation would mean that women who need to seek medical help for complications arising from taking abortion pills can do so without compromising their relationship with their doctor by lying out of fear. Doctors must have full information on what's troubling their patients. The current blanket abortion ban hampers an open doctor-patient relationship.

It is highly unjust that women in Malta are treated to different standards than their peers in European countries. Malta prides itself on having one of the best health systems in the world. Yet, it chooses to ignore highly respected medical organisations like the WHO, RCGP and RCOG that recommend access to abortion as needed, while treating women as criminals if they decide to engineer their own abortion.

Women in Malta deserve so much better. Abortion is already here. Decriminalising abortion would help address the gender disparity in healthcare.