Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1471907
NEWS 5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 29 JUNE 2022 MAYA DIMITRIJEVIC ANDREA Prudente is relieved that she is out of hospital after terminating an unviable preg- nancy in Spain and can now grieve the loss of her daughter. The American woman's case laid bare Malta's strict an- ti-abortion law that prevented doctors from ending her preg- nancy despite the risk of devel- oping sepsis. "No more tubes and needles; now what's left is an intense feel- ing of relief," Andrea told Malt- aToday from the hotel in Spain where is awaiting arrangements to get back to the US. She was discharged from a Spanish hospital after receiv- ing the necessary treatment to medically terminate an unvia- ble pregnancy. "We are now left to face and process the grieving of the daughter we lost," she said of the 16-week old foetus that had no hope of survival after her waters broke while on holiday in Malta. Doctors at Mater Dei Hos- pital would not terminate the pregnancy because the foetus still had a heartbeat despite the woman losing all amniotic fluid and having a detached placenta. Malta's complete ban on abor- tion prevented doctors from carrying out an abortion and avoid serious, life-threatening complications for the mother. Prudente's case brought Mal- ta's strict anti-abortion law to world attention as the story of this American citizen and her partner made the rounds. I spoke to her by video chat and her smile reflected the sense of relief that her life is no longer on the line. She spoke of the conflicting messages she received in Malta: the warmth and kindness of the people contrasted with the cold uncompromising anti-abortion law that put her at risk. Her partner Jay Weeldreyer thinks of Malta as "the Siren of the Mediterranean". "It draws you in, only to place you in a position of near death and per- il," he told me. Andrea commented on the immense beauty of Malta but cautions women who are con- sidering taking a holiday on the island. "Don't go there if you're a woman. If the country is not safe for a pregnant woman, then the country is just not safe." Weeldreyer echoed her thoughts, expressing deep an- ger and hurt over the ordeal his partner had to pass through be- cause doctors refused to termi- nate the pregnancy. "Why would any woman risk being there? Malta attacked my family, and now I must protect them," he said, adding the cou- ple wish to sue the Maltese state to the fullest extent. The couple were swept up in a whirlwind of media coverage which comes at a pivotal mo- ment in history as the landmark abortion judgment Roe v Wade was overturned by the US Su- preme Court. "We find ourselves in a posi- tion that can help change the lives of women. Our suffering won't be in vain; there's a bigger meaning to it. I don't want an- yone else to go through what I went through," Prudente said. Weeldreyer also challenged Maltese men on the matter. "How can any man in Malta re- main silent and allow this law to remain?" The global media coverage of Prudente's case was bitter- sweet. It was necessary for them to get their story out there to bring about change and seek the necessary treatment but it also gave anti-choice campaign- ers in Malta the chance to seek Prudente on Facebook and try to persuade her through pri- vate messages not receive the life-saving medical treatment, using religion as their weapon of choice. Before ending the conversa- tion, Weeldreyer reflected on the silence of Maltese politi- cians and asked Malta's prime minister for an explanation as to why his wife's life had to be put at risk. "Explain to me, why is it okay to put the life of Andrea at risk for the lost life of my daughter?" He is unlikely to receive a re- ply. Malta's political class, apart from Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar and MEP Cyrus Enger- er, has remained silent on the case. Abortion remains a polit- ical taboo even if women's lives can be put at risk because of the draconian law. Andrea Prudente: 'Malta draws you in, only to place you in a position of near death and peril' Andrea Prudente and partner Jay Weeldreyer