The Macedonian government’s campaign to “explain the consequences of abortion”, re-started during the winter holidays, and incited reactions from bloggers and civil society organizations, who mainly interpret this as an attempt to take Macedonia back to the Middle Ages. The first blogger to react was the gender and ethnic studies expert Kristina Hadzi-Vasileva: I just saw the latest campaign by the Government, using the slogan “Choose life.” The commercials (I saw two) are directed against abortion. The text at the end of the commercial claims that the campaign is about explaining the consequences of abortion. Horror! The first advertisement explains that abortions bring many consequences, including inflammations, infections, sepsis, consequences of anesthesia (sic), psychological consequences and so on. During 2010 a number of women died at childbirth (in medical institutions) in Macedonia from–imagine!–the above reasons. Except the last one, of course. When you die, the psychological consequences cannot harm you. I wonder since when it is the obligation of the Government to warn us about consequences of choosing abortion via public campaigns? As far as I know, physicians have the duty to disclose all aspects (positive and negative) to women who require abortion, and this is common practice. Or the administration does not believe the medical doctors, and decided to their job too? The second advertisement is even more stupid because it enhances the patriarchal stereotype. The boyfriend is interested only in football (soccer). The girlfriend tells him that they are going to have a baby, and he responds that they have no [material] conditions to raise it. But look, she manages to persuade him by reminding him that they went out the previous night and spent a thousand Denars (around EUR 16 or USD 20). She then comes out with the key “argument” – that the child will most probably be male and look like him, after which he “lays down his arms.” I am still puzzled as to how exactly this advertisement explains the consequences of abortion? Possibly there will be a sequel with the husband and wife arguing in front of the child about having no money, with him accusing her of blackmailing him to marry her “shotgun wedding“-style. Chances are that such lack of abortion can produce psychological consequences. In conclusion, it seems the current Macedonian Government challenges the right which Macedonian women (like all women from the other former Yugoslav republics) acquired during socialism, a right denied to millions of other women world over? Government's population policy boils down to having or not having a child. All other elements are inconsequential. The conditions in which these children are born are irrelevant, the quality of their schools and kindergartens is not important, nor whether the parents are emotionally and psychologically ready to raise children. It is only important to give birth to the kids, no matter what they turn into. They'll be ours anyway. Prof. Mirjana Najcevska, human rights expert, reacted [MKD] shortly afterwards: The Government’s feeble-minded campaign to misinform and manipulate the public [MKD] to limit one of the rights that women of the world fought so hard to gain—the right to abort as a right to choose—has to be challenged and opposed by the gynecologists, pediatricians, internists and all other medical professionals who have the (metaphoric) balls and who are not in awe of the [ruling political party] VMRO-DPMNE. Alongside the “arguments” emphasized about the abortion, the Government needs to inform about all the consequences of pregnancy and birth, like the most frequent complications […] Not to mention that the full anesthesia required for cesarean section, hemorrhoids, permanent sterility, the harmony of hoses for lasting hormonal disorders, chemical changes, hair loss, stretch marks, cellulite, infections during lactation, infections at delivery (10 dead mothers during 2010 [in Macedonia], against zero due to abortion)… Translator and culture promoter Jasna Shoptrajanova-Vrteva stated via Facebook (reprinted with her permission): Yesterday I read the statistics from 2009 – there were 24 abortions per every 100 births. What kinds of dullards are so illiterate about contraception?? This shows that instead of stigmatization of abortion or introduction of religious or quasi-religious blabbering (from what I hear from parents-believers whose children choose religious education at school) we need sexual education. Or it does not have to be only about sexuality, let it just be health education – about the importance of proper nutrition, sports, and prevention of STDs and unwanted pregnancy.