Back street abortion industry in Manila

The Unreported World is a critically acclaimed foreign affairs series by Channel 4 offering an insight into the lives of people in some of the most neglected parts of the planet, giving hard-hitting investigative reports on the global stories that don’t hit the headlines.

This episode, aired in 2006, reports on the issues of contraception and abortion in the Philippines, the latter being illegal. Looks at how the huge numbers of dangerous backstreet abortions and how women in poverty unable to cope with large families are desperate for contraceptive and abortion access. Against this also looks at the concerted efforts and campaigns by the Catholic Church against both these, and how they are also backed by US right-wing Christian groups.