“When I moved back to Malta 20 years ago to start my practice again, I realised how difficult the situation was for women. It wasn’t right and I needed to do something.”

Together with her colleagues, Stabile set up a free local abortion doula service for women to call them before, during or after an abortion and ask for help.

“We make our patients aware of two things: Firstly, that they understand what I am telling them is illegal. If they are caught, they will go to jail for three years and we will go to jail for four years and lose our medical license. Secondly, they have to do it themselves, as lots of people want to catch us out meaning we’re at risk.”

Stabile described the national situation as “terrible” saying moving from a ban to legalisation under such strict circumstances is “almost worse”.

Around six month ago, a legal amendment was passed which stipulates that an abortion is possible if the pregnant person’s life is in grave imminent danger. It requires three specialist doctors present in the hospital to agree.

“It is dangerous. Doctors are waiting until the very last minute and they’re not following medical protocols. In the past, it would have been possible for a doctor, gynecologist or obstetrician to decide whether a pregnancy would put the mother at risk and help end it privately, but not now.”

Stabile continued to open up about the difficulties of running the doula service, recounting a time when someone who didn’t speak English rang the line for help.

“She had three children and wanted to end the pregnancy. I told her where to find the abortion pills and made sure she knew it was illegal. However, she didn’t know how to use the Internet.”

Malta is a staunchly catholic country, so it comes as no surprise that Stabile has received “a lot of hate mail” for her work.

“I’ve received mail saying ‘I wish you were dead. We will kill you.’ I reported them to police but they didn’t do anything,” she explained.

However, things are changing, she admitted, especially among young people.

“We can now have open conversations about abortion, while a recent survey revealed that the majority of people under 30 are in favour of the decriminalisation of abortion.”

“There are very few of us actively involved in my line of work. Yes, some people can be nasty, but fortunately there are some good people in the world and they’re the ones that help you get through problems. It can be hard when you don’t see immediate change, but we support each other as much as we can.”

Sanchez, on the other hand, is a long a long-time campaigner for abortion rights in Mexico. She’s helped ensure that girls and women who have been raped could access safe abortions. She now helps US-based women access abortion pills in the wake of the Roe v Wade reversal.

Recently, Lovin Malta sat down with Stabile and acclaimed activist Rebecca Gomberts ahead of the island’s fifth abortion rally. Stay tuned for the full interview.