Taipei: Taiwan's Ministry of Justice (MOJ) on Tuesday withdrew its proposal to increase financial penalties for offenses related to illegal abortions, following strong opposition from women's rights groups.According to Focus Taiwan, the MOJ had initially gathered "opinions from all walks of life" after issuing the proposal last week, but later acknowledged that there wasn't a consensus on the matter. The proposed changes to Articles 288, 290, and 292 of the penal code faced criticism from groups such as Taiwan Women's Link and the Awakening Foundation, who argued that the amendments would be a "setback" for women's rights.Abortion in Taiwan has been legal under the Genetic Health Act since 1985, with over 100,000 legal abortions performed annually in recent years, mostly through oral medication, as noted by Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration. The MOJ's proposal focused on raising penalties for illegal abortions, arguing that existing penalties were outdated.Currently, a woman who causes her own abort ion can face up to six months in jail or a fine of up to NT$3,000 (US$94). The MOJ had proposed increasing this fine to NT$80,000, a significant 26-fold increase. Additionally, the MOJ suggested increasing fines for those performing abortions for profit from NT$15,000 to NT$500,000, while keeping the potential jail time the same. For abortions resulting in "aggravated injury," the penalty could have risen from NT$15,000 to NT$1,000,000, with similar increases for abortions resulting in a woman's death.The MOJ also proposed eliminating Article 292, which criminalizes advertising abortion methods or services, citing a lack of indictments under this article in the past decade.The MOJ argued that the amendments aimed to protect women's bodily autonomy and fetal rights in line with the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). However, Taiwan Women's Link criticized this interpretation, highlighting that the 2022 CEDAW National Report recommended decrimi nalizing abortion.Women's groups contended that the proposed changes would unfairly penalize women while ignoring the role of men in unwanted pregnancies. Both Taiwan Women's Link and the Awakening Foundation called for the abolition of abortion-related crimes, emphasizing reproductive autonomy and gender equality.The women's groups held a press conference on Tuesday to express their opposition, displaying banners with slogans advocating for reproductive rights. In response to the public pressure, the MOJ decided to withdraw the proposal later that day.