Abortion pills placed in secret key safes across Malta and Gozo

A non-profit organisation has placed several key safes containing abortion pills in locations across Malta and Gozo, as part of a campaign to raise awareness about the country’s restrictive abortion laws.

Women on Waves, which provides information and support on safe abortion in restrictive settings, said it has installed around 15 key safes in secret locations Malta and Gozo. Each key safe contains two commonly used medications that can induce an abortion, the organisation said. 

“Women who are less than 9 weeks pregnant and in need of an abortion can email us to get the location and the code of the safes,” the organisation said in a statement published on its website.

What the pills look like inside the key safes Photo: Jonathan Borg

Abortion is illegal in Malta except when performed by doctors to save a woman’s life, and a woman was recently handed a three-year suspended prison sentence after being found guilty of having an abortion.

Citing figures published by Doctors for Choice, a pro-choice medical organisation, Women on Waves noted that the number of abortion pill packages shipped to Malta has been increasing each year since 2017. The figure reached a record of more than 650 in 2025.

Such packages are provided by other women’s organisations such as Women on Web and Women Help Women.  

Women on Waves said that the World Health Organisation and the International Federation of Gynaecologists and Obstetrics support telemedicine abortion services and self-managed abortions, which it described as ” very safe and effective.”

It added that the key safes were unveiled to coincide with its participation in the Malta Biennale, where it is exhibiting an artwork titled ‘Do you need a safe abortion?’.

In March, the group said its work at the biennale was being censored because of its wording and would be removed. However, as of April, the artwork remained on display.

Under a recent European Commission decision, Malta is not required to change its abortion laws or use EU funds to support abortion access. However, other EU countries may use EU funding to assist Maltese women seeking abortions abroad.