HIGH COURT LIFTS BAN ON MARIE STOPES SAFE ABORTION ADVERTS

The High Court has overturned restrictions that had prohibited Marie Stopes Kenya from advertising safe abortion services and post-abortion care. The court determined that the directives were issued without any legal foundation.

Presiding Judge Chacha Mwita nullified the decisions of three state bodies: the Kenya Films and Classification Board (KFCB), the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC), and the Director of Medical Services (DMS). He declared their actions unconstitutional, unlawful, and exceeded their legal authority.

The case Network for Adolescents and Youth of Africa & Another v Attorney General & Others, Petition No. 428 of 2018 was initiated in November 2018 by advocacy groups represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights. They argued that the bans unlawfully restricted access to essential sexual and reproductive health services and information for women, girls, and young people.

Justice Mwita’s judgment detailed how each agency overstepped its bounds: The KFCB unlawfully banned a government-partnered public awareness campaign, as it holds no legal mandate to censor such reproductive health information. KMPDC incorrectly applied its disciplinary powers, which are restricted to individual practitioners, not institutions like Marie Stopes.

The Director of Medical Services issued a directive from a legally non-existent office, as the position had been abolished under the Health Act of 2017. The court concluded that the bans violated constitutional rights to health, information, and bodily dignity, exposing vulnerable individuals to serious risk.