Causas públicas, historias privadas: los derechos reproductivos y el aborto en Bolivia

This paper offers reflections about elements that affect women’s decisions about reproduction and abortion. It contributes to debates about policies, activist campaigns and the Bolivian Penal Code, in a context where inequalities and gender-based violence challenge the efficacy of technologies and laws to guarantee women’s ability to exercise the right to choose. The authors analyze women’s narratives about their experiences in two studies carried out in La Paz and El Alto, and consider different interpretations of men’s participation and approaches from the field of masculinities. The paper examines diverse situations relating to abortion that illustrate the complexity faced by women deciding on reproductive matters, alone or with the participation of partners and others.