With the beginning of the new parliamentary term, a preliminary draft of the Criminal Code is being debated by the Dominican Republic’s Congress with the objective of approving a reformed version by the end of this legislative year. Legislators are currently pushing forward with a reformed criminal code that would fail to decriminalize abortion in three circumstances and that would not provide protections against torture, violence and discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity. We demand the Congress approves a reformed criminal code that meets their human rights obligations to respect, protect and fulfil women’s, girls’ and LGBTIQ+ people’s rights, lives, health, dignity, and autonomy.
