Poland Delays Abortion Ban Amid Protests

The Polish government has chosen to delay implementing a controversial law that would effectively ban almost all terminations in Poland, after it prompted widescale protests across the country.

Polish media has reported that women have placed themselves "on strike", with the country experiencing some of the largest dissents since the fall of communism in 1989.

"There is a discussion going on, and it would be good to take some time for dialogue and for finding a new position in this situation, which is difficult and stirs high emotions," Michał Dworczyk, the head of the prime minister's office, told Polish media on Tuesday.

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Poland was already bound to some of the strictest abortion laws in Europe. Last month, a tribunal ruled that abortion of foetuses even with serious or irreversible defects should be made illegal. These terminations account for the vast majority of procedures that take place in the country.

The abortion ruling, which was made under the Law and Justice Party (PiS), sparked universal backlash from all corners of the political spectrum, and a decision has not been published despite its Monday deadline.

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In a bid to assuage protestors, Poland's prime-minister Mateusz Morawiecki, has called for talks with protesters and opposition MPs, while the PiS-aligned president, Andrzej Duda, suggested a new proposal that would allow abortion in cases of life-threatening birth defects but not for conditions such as Down's syndrome. The president's suggestion is unlikely to be well-received by left-wing protesters or the right-wing government.

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While Poland has currently instigated a ban on gatherings of over five people, due to the ongoing spread of coronavirus, livid protestors have still taken to the streets regardless. In powerful scenes, more than 100,000 people gathered in the streets of Warsaw to protest against the controversial ruling.

Speaking to the Guardian, Anna Wójcik, a researcher at the law studies institute at the Polish Academy of Sciences, explained: "It's clearly a political decision.

"Judgments are meant to be published with no delay. It's a legal trick to withhold publishing."

The law is yet to come into effect.

Topics: News

Kimberley Bond

Kim is a journalist at Tyla, and has previously worked at the Evening Standard, Radio Times as well as several national newspapers. A showbiz obsessive and a television fanatic, Kim is particularly interested in celebrity gossip, A-list events and the latest releases on either the big or small screen. Contact her at [email protected]

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