Single women's experiences of premarital pregnancy and induced abortion in Lombok, Eastern Indonesia

Bibliographic Data

ID3972293
AuthorsLinda Rae Bennett (0000-0002-6472-4185, The University of Melbourne, corresponding author)
Year2001
Volume9
Issue17
Pages37-43
Publication date2001-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueReproductive Health Matters (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0968-8080 • E-ISSN: 1460-9576
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1016/s0968-8080(01)90006-0
PMID11468844
OpenAlexW2037883225
LanguageEN
Citations received30
References cited3

Induced abortion is widely practiced in Indonesia by both married and unmarried women. This paper draws on ethnographic research, conducted between 1996 and 1998, which focused on reproductive health and sexuality among young single women on the island of Lombok in Eastern Indonesia. While abortion for married women is tacitly accepted, especially for women with two or more children, premarital pregnancy and abortion remain a highly stigmatised and isolating experience for single women. Government family planning services are not legally permitted to provide contraception to single women and their access to reproductive health care is very limited. Abortion providers were highly critical of unmarried women who sought abortions, despite their willingness to carry out the procedure. The quality of abortion services offered to single women was compromised by the stigma attached to premarital sex and pregnancy. Women who experienced unplanned premarital pregnancy faced personal and familial shame, compromised marriage prospects, abandonment by their partners, single motherhood, a stigmatised child, early cessation of education, and an interrupted income or career, all of which were not desirable options. Young women were only able to legitimately continue premarital pregnancy through marriage. In the absence of an offer of marriage, single women necessarily resorted to abortion to avoid compromising their futures

Abortion · Environmental health · Family planning · Population · Pregnancy · Reproductive health · Research methodology · Sociology · Unsafe abortion · Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Gender Studies · Medicine · Reproductive Health and Contraception