In Poland, the return of the debate on the right to abortion

The Prime Minister promised this during his election in December and the debate is therefore once again on the table in Parliament. But even within the ruling coalition, severe differences exist.

If there is one subject that divides in Poland, a predominantly Catholic country, it is the right to voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion). And it is the left wing of the ruling coalition which has brought the debate back to the table in Parliament since April 11. She hopes to make abortion legal up to the twelfth week of pregnancy.

Women’s rights suffered significant setbacks during the conservative nationalists’ eight years in government. When he came to power in December 2023, Prime Minister Donald Tusk promised to make abortion legal. Today, abortion is only legal if the pregnancy results from rape or incest or if it directly threatens the life or health of the mother.

“You have never been pregnant and you don’t know what it means to carry a child and be afraid.”

Monika Rosa, left-wing MP

in front of the Polish Parliament

“Whatever your comments on ethics or moralsleft-wing MP Monika Rosa said on Thursday to MPs from the populist right who are defending the current legislation. You will never know what it means to be afraid of being pregnant in Poland.” MP Anna Maria Żukowska, for her part, is leading a project to decriminalize assisted abortion. “Today in Poland, helping someone to have an abortion is punishable by three years in prison, she explains. Three years ! It’s a scandal and it’s unacceptable.”

Internal dissensions and presidential veto promise

But these debates are a real test for the parliamentary majority and reveal the fragility of the coalition which holds 248 of the 460 seats in the lower house. The majority required to pass the projects is 231 votes and not everyone agrees on the liberalization of abortion. In the same camp, some want to keep the law as it is, like the conservative peasant party PSL which holds 32 seats.

Moreover, the president, Andrzej Duda, an ally of the populist Law and Justice, has already threatened to veto any changes on abortion, as he did last month on emergency contraception. The government announced that it would circumvent this veto by authorizing pharmacists to prescribe the morning-after pill themselves. But the ruling coalition risks having to wait until next year’s presidential election, hoping to replace Andrzej Duda with a liberal, because it does not have the three-fifths majority required to pass. beyond a presidential veto.

According to a poll by the Ipsos institute, published Thursday, 35% of Poles support the right to abortion up to the 12th week of pregnancy. A restoration of this right in the event of fetal malformation, abolished by the nationalist government, is desired by 21% of those questioned, while, for 14% of them, the current state of the legislation is satisfactory. 23% of Poles want a national referendum on the issue.