As abortion law takes effect, Poland explodes in protests
WARSAW: A controversial Polish court ruling that imposes a neartotal ban on abortion came into force on Wednesday, sparking nationwide protests that brought thousands into the streets despite coronavirus restrictions.
The move means that all abortions in Poland will be banned except in cases of rape and incest, or when the mother’s life or health are considered to be at risk. Private broadcaster TVN24 showed a street march in Warsaw stretching to more than a kilometre in length, with smaller ad hoc rallies staged in the cities of Wroclaw, Katowice, Poznan and Szczecin.
Protesters in the capital Warsaw lit red flares, waved rainbow flags associated with LGBT community and brandished placards reading “This Means War” and “Free Choice, Not Terror.”
Many also held up the red lightning symbol used by prochoice activists as they brought traffic to a halt.
The ruling is supported by Poland’s right-wing and ultracatholic government, which said it was giving it legal force by publishing it in the Journal of Laws in order to respect its constitutional obligations.
It could be seen on the Journal’s website late on Wednesday.
The country was rocked by massive demonstrations when the constitutional court verdict was first issued in October, following a request by members of the governing ultra-catholic Law and Justice party (PIS).
The October 22 ruling said abortions in cases of foetal abnormalities were “incompatible” with the constitution.
“Express your anger today as you see fit,” Marta Lempart, a leading protest organiser from the organisation Women’s Strike, told a hastily-arranged press conference after the government announcement.
“We are calling on everyone to go into the streets,” she said, adding that the publication of the ruling constituted “a crime”.
Klementyna Suchanow, another organiser from Women’s Strike, said, “The whole of Poland is mobilising, not just in Warsaw. We are ready!
“When we speak of hell for women, we can also speak of hell for the government. We are going to make this hell for you,” she said. Suchanow and Lempart both wore green headscarves - the symbol of abortion rights activists in Argentina, which legalised abortion last month in a landmark move.
Predominantly Catholic Poland already has one of Europe’s most restrictive laws on abortion. There are fewer than 2,000 legal abortions every year and women’s groups estimate that an additional 200,000 women abort either illegally or abroad.