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Italian actress reveals she was pressured to choose abortion by her film agent but said “absolutely not!”

Italian actress Ornella Muti revealed in a recent interview that she was pressured by her agent to have an abortion when she was pregnant at 18. 

Muti, also known as Francesca Romana Rivelli, spoke to Italian magazine Corriere della Sera about her long acting career, which began at 14. 

Initially, Ms Muti spoke about being a single mother at 18. “It wasn’t that easy”, she said

“It could be done without problems abroad”

When she found out she was pregnant, she was in the midst of filming. Muti revealed that both her mother and her film agent suggested abortion to her. Although abortion was illegal in Italy at the time, the mother of the Italian actress told her that “it could be done without problems abroad”. 

Abortion became legal in Italy in 1978, four years after the birth of Naike, Ornella Muti’s firstborn child. 

“Absolutely not!”

Ms Muti was adamant that she would not have an abortion just so that she could make a film. In response to pressure from her agent and mother, she affirmed “absolutely not!”. 

Sadly, many women in the sport and entertainment industry have spoken about intense pressure to choose abortion. Female athletes have spoken up about being pressured into abortion and Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor revealed she was encouraged to have an abortion by a record producer and doctor. She recalls the doctor saying “Your record company has spent £100,000 recording your album. You owe it to them not to have this baby”.

Right To Life UK spokesperson Catherine Robinson said “Ornella Muti showed great bravery to withstand the pressure of those around her to choose abortion. Whilst the story ended well for Ms Muti and her daughter, all too often that is not the case”. 

“UK polling has also shown that a shocking 7% of British women have been pressured into an abortion by their husband or partner. Such statistics contradict the idea that abortion is always the ‘choice’ it is claimed to be”. 

“Women face all sorts of pressures to have an abortion. There may be professional or family pressure, perhaps medical and financial pressure. Whatever it may be, it is clear that abortion is not simply a matter of choice despite the slogans of the pro-choice movement. As a society, we need to support women so that they feel empowered to welcome new life”.

Dear reader,

You may be surprised to learn that our 24-week abortion time limit is out of line with the majority of European Union countries, where the most common time limit for abortion on demand or on broad social grounds is 12 weeks gestation.

The latest guidance from the British Association of Perinatal Medicine enables doctors to intervene to save premature babies from 22 weeks. The latest research indicates that a significant number of babies born at 22 weeks gestation can survive outside the womb, and this number increases with proactive perinatal care.

This leaves a real contradiction in British law. In one room of a hospital, doctors could be working to save a baby born alive at 23 weeks whilst, in another room of that same hospital, a doctor could perform an abortion that would end the life of a baby at the same age.

The majority of the British population support reducing the time limit. Polling has shown that 70% of British women favour a reduction in the time limit from 24 weeks to 20 weeks or below.

Please click the button below to sign the petition to the Prime Minister, asking him to do everything in his power to reduce the abortion time limit.