A man, Jin Mimae, aged 21, has admitted to tricking his 18-year-old pregnant girlfriend into taking the abortion drug Mifepristone. She later suffered a miscarriage.
The accused, a resident of Fukuoka, had told his girlfriend that the medication was for a sexually transmitted disease.
The young woman took the Mifepristone five weeks into her pregnancy. She then felt unwell. Suspecting foul play, an analysis of her blood and urine tested positive for Mifepristone, a drug prohibited in Japan, where chemical abortion is illegal.
Mr Mimae has now admitted to the crime, stating that “I didn’t want to marry her… Because of the current economic conditions, I did not want to raise a child”.
Although the police cannot prove that the Mifepristone was responsible for the miscarriage – although it is likely – they have charged the boyfriend with “attempted abortion without consent”.
SPUC comment
A SPUC spokesperson said: “It is obvious that a terrible crime has been committed against both the mother and her unborn baby. Unfortunately, such cases are indicative of the broader mistreatment of women around the globe, women who are used and discarded, along with their baby.
“Whether through trickery or coercion, many pregnant women are subject to abuse and violence that often goes unrecognised – 75% of women contacting the Abortion Recovery Care and Helpline (ARCH) have experienced some form of pressure or coercion.
“The recent relaxation of abortion laws here in the UK, allowing women to take abortion pills at home, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, puts such women at further risk and without recourse. The ease with which such powerful, life-altering drugs can be obtained will only serve to increase the problem of the abuse and mistreatment of women.”
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