The Polish parliament voted in favor of more liberal abortion rights on Friday. However, it is still unclear exactly what this will look like. Four bills are now being examined.
As reported, the three coalition partners agree that the abortion law should be relaxed, but not how far this should go. The bill from the party of Donald Tusk (head of government, note) provides for the full legalization of abortions up to the twelfth week, which would roughly correspond to the deadlines in Austria. The left-wing alliance Lewica demands the same, but also wants impunity.
The Christian-conservative “Third Way” party, on the other hand, proposes a return to the so-called compromise solution, which was in force until the Constitutional Court’s ruling in 2020. This means that abortions in Poland would only be legal after a crime or if there is there is a risk to the pregnant woman and the fetus.
Compromise possible?
Now the special committee must examine four bills and try to bring the positions under one umbrella. That alone is a difficult undertaking. If this succeeds, there is another hurdle: President Andrzej Duda, from the national conservative PiS party, could veto the law.
Poland currently has one of the strictest abortion laws in Europe. As of 2020, abortion is only allowed after rape, incest or if the life of the pregnant woman is in danger. Fetal malformations are no exception to the ban.
Source: Krone
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