South Koreas president nominated two progressive judges to the countrys top court this month, raising the possibility that a longstanding abortion ban could be repealed.

The Constitutional Court is slated to rule next month on a challenge to the ban , which makes abortion punishable by up to two years in prison for doctors who illegally perform the procedure. An obstetrician initiated the challenge after he was charged in 2017 with performing 69 illegal abortions from November 2013 to June 2015.

This isnt just whether or not youre going to jail. Its about how hard it is for women to get a safe abortion and protect their health, Ryu Min-hee, core counsel on the case and an attorney at Korean Lawyers for Public Interest and Human Rights, told GlobalPost last year. We hope that the Constitutional Court of Korea will make the right decision on this, because its long overdue.

South Korea is one of the few developed nations that prohibits and punishes abortions under most circumstances. A 1973 amendment to the countrys 1950s ban made it possible for women to be allowed access to abortion if they faced grave health risks or if their pregnancies were the result of rape or incest, for example. But those who terminate their pregnancies for other reasons face fines and up to a year in prison.