Abortion as a Geopolitical Issue: Case Study of Chile & United States

Politics can be described as actions about the governance of an area o nation, such as debating about the possession of power by interested parties. Politics cover a wide range of sections, and geography is one of them. Geopolitics is the study of how geographical aspects, such as human and physical elements, affect international relations as well as politics. Political geography is a human geography domain that shows how one's geographical area affects their politics (Briney, 2019). Geopolitics specializes in the study of the relationship between countries or regions. Political geography allows geographers to establish how spatial orders affect politics and vice versa (Gallaher et al. 2009).

Geopolitics 

Geopolitics helps in the research on foreign policies to predict, explain and understand political conduct through different geographical domains, which include applied science, natural resources, demography, topography, climate, and area studies of the target region. The boundary of a country marks the extent to which the government can stretch its power evenly (Painter & Jeffrey, 2009). Different political processes will aid the research since they are all linked to the geographical layout of an area. Various human agencies and activities influence a political process. As our different interests, wants, desires and needs arise, an impossibility to solve them automatically and instantly occurs, giving rise to politics. People stage a strategic action, which can generate co-operation or struggle. Theoretical support in the study will include political economy and world-systems theories as well as post-structuralism and political ecology.

Abortion

Abortion, a standard medical procedure, is the termination of a human fetus before birth. The act is widely debated with activists trying to change female reproductive laws to favour women. Abortion is a political issue in many countries, with a portion of leaders being against it whiles the other half proposing such rules. The intersection of abortion with concerns about health, race, class, and gender makes the act bear cultural and social geography characteristics. In my research, I will focus on two case studies to illustrate abortion as a geopolitical issue. One case study will be the Roe versus Wade case in the US, while the second case will focus on the development of abortion rules in Chile, a lower-income country than the US.

The first abortion case study is based on an article about the road towards enhancing just reproductive rules in Chile. The article talks about how the Chilean president pressed for new reforms on abortion rules. She managed to allow abortion under the circumstances described below, which were, however, not adequate. The article also covers in deep the migration of Chilean pregnant women to Peru seeking an abortion as well as how allowing for the termination of unwanted pregnancies would help its citizens. The article's research is based on other resources provided in the bibliography. The work offers figures, percentages, as well as a video clip to support its information. The main argument, as described in the upcoming paragraphs, is that although Chile has allowed abortion in some instances, the reproductive rules are still fully unrefined. Chilean women perform a lot of illegal and unsafe pregnancies, which would be legal if the abortion law was revised. The key points of the article include providing the history of abortion laws as well as possible solutions to the statutes and the impact of enhancing them. The most crucial point in the paper explains how Chilean women, out of desperation, move to Peru to seek a legal abortion. The migration shows the secure link between geography and politics. These articles conclude that the reproductive laws in Chile should be revised further to allow the termination of unwanted pregnancies by women in the country.

Chile, a country that had hard restrictions on any kind of abortion, had abortion policies loosened. Michelle Bachelet, the country's president, who is a woman, pushed through to relieve the rule. The president used her political power to allow pregnancy termination in three occasions-a rape case, unviable fetal development, as well as when the life of the mother in danger. Human Rights Watch records that about 35% of pregnancies undergo abortion in Chile.

The abortion rules in Chile, however, do not allow any other kind of abortion. Most women in the country, thus crave for more freedom to carry out the abortion. Wealthy women in Chile have options such as using a doctor in the country in elite clandestine providers or seeking services in the neighboring countries. The poor women find illegal providers who are cheap or use internet medication guidelines. The constitution makes it almost impossible for pregnant women to prove that they fall under the three cases, and hence they must seek ways of getting an abortion. The geography of Chile is narrow and long, making it expensive to leave the country. The northern border is the only cheap and quick way to leave the country and opens up to Peru. The clinics in Peru, however, can be run by practitioners with no medical training making the practice risky.

On the other hand, a lot of women in Chile still feel that abortion rules should be relaxed. Chile experiences 160000 abortions annually and high, unsafe abortion deaths (Freeman, 2017). About 64000 abortions are of girls below eighteen years, showing that the pregnancies are wanted, and if the rules were revised, such young women could undergo safe and legal termination of such pregnancies. The relaxation of the regulations will reduce unsafe pregnancies since most women who had no right to terminate unwanted pregnancies would be free to do so. Reproductive justice in Chile has not been fully achieved in Chile, making people push for such reforms.

The second case study is based on an article is about the Roe vs. Wade case and its impacts. The article talks about the proceeding of the case. The argument is explained clearly, and the Supreme Court ruled that a woman had a medical choice and hence could choose to terminate her pregnancy if it was unwanted. The courts find it hard, to decide if the pregnancy was unintended. Therefore, abortion is common among women. The article also talks about the geographical effect on political reform as well as the impact of the new rule in the US. The main argument in the paper reflects on the effect of the law in the US. Many people continue to challenge the ruling, but the Supreme Court upholds its decision that everyone has a right to privacy. The most crucial point to note in the article is that geography made it hard for Roe to seek legal abortion in other states hence requesting a court hearing. The paper concludes that the ruling was a landmark that made the US legalize abortion, showing the link between geography and politics. Raped women who were released by their captors too late bore ethically impure children, who were a reminder of the dark deeds (Staeheli, Kofman & Peake, 2004).   

Conclusion

To conclude, this essay has provided an overview of politics, geopolitics, and political geography. The discussion highlighted how geography plays a significant role in shaping politics and how geopolitical issues can be analyzed through a geographical lens. The essay also explored the intersection of abortion and politics, with a focus on Chile and the US. Through case studies, it was evident that the geographical location of a country impacts the availability and accessibility of abortion services. The essay showed that the relaxation of abortion laws can have a positive impact on women's health and reduce unsafe abortions. Overall, this essay has demonstrated how the study of politics and geography can help us understand the complexities of abortion laws and their impact on women's health.