South Africa: Brenda's Battle

In South Africa abortion and discourse on sexuality are cultural taboos. But now one woman is striving to break this trend and raise awareness of the rising number of deaths caused by unsafe abortion.

Across the world unsafe abortion is the cause of 13 percent of maternal deaths.

In South Africa the problem is even more severe, as abortion is legal up to 20 weeks into a pregnancy.

With discourse on reproductive health an unpopular topic there is also little awareness of the risks of abortion.

Brenda is a health care worker in South Africa who is educating young women about sexual and reproductive health, particularly the dangers of illegal abortions. But she faces many challenges, including corrupt doctors and powerful cultural taboos.

"It’s not easy really to talk about abortion. Because in our culture, we don’t talk about sexuality, our private parts.

It’s very sensitive issues. So I find that most women don’t know about contraceptives.

They don’t know much about termination. They don’t know who to talk to."

Unsurprisingly, unqualified doctors can prescribe solutions to women without questions or consequences.

"The doctor didn't ask about my medical history or anything".

Brenda intends to change this, one women at a time, by breaking the taboo and educating people about sexual and reproductive health.

"This is not safe, I want women to be independent, to have rights and I am not going to stop until they do!".

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