Campaigner with Down syndrome loses bid to change abortion law

LONDON: A British woman with Down syndrome on Friday lost a court bid to change a law that allows the abortion of unborn babies with the condition up to full term.

The case is part of a campaign by a group called “Don´t Screen Us Out” that fights negative stereotypes about people with Down syndrome and calls for them to have an “equal chance to be born”.

Down syndrome is a genetic condition where babies are born with an extra chromosome, resulting in varying levels of learning and physical disability. A screening test for the condition is available during pregnancy. Heidi Crowter, 27, had taken her case against the UK government to the Court of Appeal, arguing that the law on abortion was an instance of inequality.