The ultra-conservative Polish government has further curtailed the right to abortion, which is only possible in rare cases. The Women's Strike movement calls for demonstrations again.
In Poland, feminists were already on the streets in November 2020, against a regulation banning abortion for fetal malformations. The vote was postponed due to a dispute over its unconstitutionality. This regulation was validated on January 27, 2020 by the Constitutional Court. This means that it is almost impossible to have a legal abortion in Poland, except in cases of rape, incest or when the mother's health is in danger.
This law is in line with the ruling far-right government. "The Law and Justice Party" (PiS) is ultra-conservative and particularly backward with regard to the rights of women and LGBTQI + people. Feminist associations, such as the Women's Strike (Strajk Kobiet), have called for taking to the streets, supported by European political figures. German MEP Terry Reintke and his parliamentary assistant tweet: "The Polish" Constitutional "Court has published the" justification "for the inhumane prohibition of abortion. Today and every day, we stand in solidarity with Polish women who resist attacks on our rights and our bodies. Europe is behind you. "
Read also: Right to abortion: how to support Polish women? Testimonials
One of the representatives of the Strajk Kobiet association, Natalia Pancewicz, agreed to answer our questions last November. "We are afraid that our country will become, and it is already for some things, an impossible place to live, she explained. The Constitutional Court has put on the table a total ban on abortion, we have no-go zones for LGBT people, our health system is at the end of its rope (…), the Minister of Education is misogynist and homophobic and nothing is being done about the climate crisis. The government is not just failing in every way, it is destroying everything without respecting human rights. More and more young people are leaving the country because they cannot see themselves living here and the prospects are close to zero. "
Polish women are going to need support. And the situation in the country shows the ravages of the ultra-conservative far-right for women's rights.