Thousands of abortion rights activists have staged a present of help for a girl jailed for 2 years for breaking abortion legal guidelines.

The protest was sparked after a 44-year-old mom of three was given a 28-month extended sentence earlier this week after taking abortion tablets after the 24-week authorized restrict.

She was between 32 and 34 weeks pregnant on the time.

Protesters descended on London on Saturday, marching from the Royal Courts of Justice to Whitehall, demanding an finish to the criminalisation of abortion.

The case has galvanised the pro-abortion motion, and highlighted British abortion regulation which states that within the majority of circumstances, after 24-weeks abortion is a felony offence.

Speaking through the march, Labour MP Stella Creasy gave a speech to the protesters.

"This week proves what some of us have been trying to tell, often at length, patiently, to middle-aged men on Twitter," she mentioned.

"We do not have a legal right to choose in England and Wales, and that has very real consequences.

"There have been 67 authorized prosecutions of girls up to now 10 years beneath the offences in opposition to the individual act of 1861."

Read extra:What are the abortion laws in UK and the punishments for breaking them?Woman jailed for taking abortion pills after legal limit during lockdown

She mentioned that the laws was not "fit for purpose".

"It is a piece of legislation, especially sections 58 and 59, that are no longer fit for purpose," she mentioned.

"And I stand here today asking what your red line is, because absolutely these cases are difficult, nobody doubts that, but what we're asking for is a starting point of compassion.

"Because we now discover a mum of three kids, considered one of whom has particular training wants, in jail.

"Whose interests does that serve, to keep punishing this woman?"

One protester, Fiona, who repeatedly attends pro-abortion rallies and had travelled from Birmingham, instructed Sky News: "I'm here for my daughter, for me and all women.

"It's a troublesome topic for many individuals, however I feel as ladies we'd like to have the ability to resolve for ourselves whether or not we now have a child. Every little one deserves to be wished.

Another, known as Jill, instructed Sky News: "I can't express just how outraged I am by this and how desperate I feel.

"But I need to present solidarity along with her and ladies all around the world in truth, who haven't got abortion, who haven't got abortion rights and nonetheless danger their life and danger their freedom with a view to management their very own fertility."

"This is probably the most primary factor a lady's proper to have a baby or to not have a baby is a lady's proper to be pregnant and to not be pregnant and for it to be abused like this in 2023 is outrageous."

Lauren, who travelled to the march along with her mom, and instructed Sky News: "It's amazing what's been achieved in Northern Ireland only very recently as well. And there is obviously now an imbalance. There's an imbalance across the world.

"I feel for me, the factor is individuals assume that we have got much more rights right here than we really do and also you solely discover out when there is a state of affairs like this fairly how a lot our rights are restricted or not sufficient."

In England, Scotland and Wales, the 162-year-old regulation banning abortion was amended in 1967, legalising abortion with an authorised supplier as much as 28-weeks, which was later lowered to 24-weeks in 1991.

There are very restricted circumstances that might enable an abortion after 24-weeks, similar to if the mom's life is in danger or if the kid could be born with a extreme incapacity.

During the COVID-19 lockdown, at-home abortion tablets have been made obtainable by put up for individuals searching for an abortion within the first 10 weeks of being pregnant, whereas earlier than they'd have needed to attend a clinic in individual, and the measure was made everlasting in August 2020.

In Northern Ireland, abortion was decriminalised in 2019.