Impressions from Poland - Two Young Poles on the Regulation of Abortion INTERVIEW
The 3rd of October 2016 will go down in the history books: Poland, infamous for its strict abortion laws, faced the biggest demonstrations since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Close to 100.000 people took the streets across the country on this “Czarny Poniedzałek”, Black Monday, to voice their dissatisfaction and opposition towards the national-conservative government’s intentions to further tighten the abortion law, making abortion completely illegal and punishable. Consequently, both women, who decide to have an abortion, as well as the doctors carrying out the medical procedure could have faced prison sentences up to five years, only avoiding imprisonment, if the mother’s life was at risk.
The regulations on abortion in Poland have been among the strictest in the world even before the new law – since 1993, abortion was only legal in three circumstances: the life of the mother was at risk, the unborn child suffered from severe, irreversible disabilities, in cases of rape.
Initially the parliament adopted the law, which was initiated by the movement “Stop abortions”, after the first reading. Then, after the mass protests last Monday, the Polish parliament Sejm quickly scheduled another session, and 352 members now opposed the law, with another 58 still supporting it and 18 abstaining.
The PACT spoke with two young Poles on this matter:
What is your stand on abortion and the legal situaion in Poland?
Aga: I'm pro-abortion, or to be more specific, pro-freedom of choice. According to me, the legal situation is appropriate with its three conditions allowing this act. It could be more lenient but should definitely not be stricter than it is now.
Tymon: The existing so-called ‘compromise’ on abortion matters from1993 is one of the most restrictive and ineffective legislative responses in Europe to regulate reproductive rights in Europe. It is estimated that over 100.000 Polish women get an abortion every year, only 1% of which is considered legal in the light of the present legal framework in this field. It also has to be stressed that despite the unequivocal wording of the provisions constituing the ‘abortion compromise’ in Poland, the effective access to legal abortion is being restricted regularly. As a result of that Poland has been found many times in violation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (a right to respect for private life), as well as Article 3 establishing a prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment. I hope that sooner or later Poland will join the majority of European states in which abortion is legal on request and not, as it stands now, restricted to fetal defects, rape or threat to maternal health.
How did you feel, when the restrictions and plans on legal changes were announced?
Aga: I was outraged, as most of us were, by the way in which our government wanted to interfere with private peoples' lives. The Act on Abortion violates human dignity and freedom rights and should have never been proposed.
Tymon: Putting the idea of further restrictions or even ban of abortion is an inseparable part of the agenda of the present Polish government attempting to squander the achievements of the years following the bloodless fall of the communist regime. Although the ‘abortion compromise’ is far from perfect, it used to be considered as a minimum standard that should not be exacerbated. At first I could not believe that it is actually happening but then I realised that I have this feeling each time the present Polish government proposes amendments to the existing legal framework in the name of the so-called ‘Good Change’ policy. I am mad that reproductive rights have become subject to political games.
Did you participate in the "Czarny Poniedziałek"-protests? Why/Why not?
Aga: No, I didn't. I have never attended any protests or public gatherings. I don't get involved in political issues. Mostly because of my profession. It could harm my image.
Tymon: I could not imagine ignoring the ”Czarny Poniedziałek” protest. I believed it was my duty to show solidarity with Polish women that, according to the proposed ban on abortion, were supposed to be imprisoned for example in the case of miscarriage, or doctors who conduct prenatal screening often saving millions of lives by doing so. In my opinion, the need to protect human dignity, the rights of women and children, and - last but not least - simple human decency requires at least to maintain the ‘abortion compromise’.
Were you surprised how influential the protests turned out to be?
Aga: Yes, I was. And I was shocked how many people were protesting in the streets and voiced their criticism on social media. But I knew that the Act on Abortion wouldn't go through as it was too controversial.
Tymon: I was surprised to see PiS [Prawo i Sprawiedliwość, Law and Justice Party; currently the ruling party in Poland] withdrawing its support for limiting cases of lawful abortion. The remaining protests taking place in Poland prior to the ones on this matter seemed to have limited impact on the present policy of the government. However, we should remain vigilant and observe their next steps.
What do you think will happen next?
Aga: Unfortunately, the Polish government wants to control Polish citizens, so they will come up with another insane idea. But I hope we have enough power to stifle all of them.
Tymon: The most recent news show that it is not over yet. Conversely, the main PiS politicians already claimed that they are going to ensure that ‘even in pregnancies which are very difficult, when a child is sure to die or is strongly deformed, women end up giving birth so that the child can be baptised, buried, and have a name’. This shows that the ”Czarny Poniedziałek”-protest was just a battle in war, after which the government has regrouped quickly and is almost ready to start another campaign in this field.
Is this a momentum for the Polish society to achieve more, or do you think it was more of a one time thing?
Aga: I think it was more of a one time thing but showed that such protests bring a tangible outcome.
Tymon: Since the present government is in power, the rise of civil society organisations and actions has been clearly visible in Poland. At first they focused on the violations of the principles of democracy and rule of law. Later on other issues joined the agenda of civil society movements and protests, such as data protection, civil service, public service media, the environment and many others. Unfortunately, according to a popular saying, ”a Pole is wise after the event”. The Polish society will undoubtedly achieve more but each progress is preceded by impediments that - at least at the beginning - seem to be of inextricable character.
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Despite the demonstration of the society’s power, the situation for many women remains difficult: Doctors can refuse to carry out an abortion, if they feel, it is not compliable with their moral beliefs. Consequently, especially across the south of Poland, thousands of women de facto do not have access to an abortion.
Poland furthermore is not the only country that faces an increased blur of people’s self-determination with state regulation and a bigger influence of the church’s interest: Recently also the Russian Orthodox church alongside civil movements in the country attempt to tighten the abortion laws in the Russian Federation, with similar aims as the initiative in Poland: to completely ban abortion.
Photo Credit: Radio Zet/Instagram User Szestek (the poster in the picture reads "the rights of women" in Polish)
