Poland’s top human rights official on Thursday condemned a top court ruling that amounts to a near-total ban on abortion, saying it severely restricts women’s rights and “condemns them to torture”.
The ruling by the Constitutional Court sparked major protests on Wednesday night across Poland, which has traditionally been a bastion of Roman Catholicism but is undergoing rapid secularization among young city dwellers. More protests were expected on Thursday.
The Constitutional Court on Wednesday justified a controversial October ruling that bans abortions on fetuses with congenital defects, even if the defects are so severe that there is no chance of survival at birth. Only pregnancy through crimes such as rape and incest remain grounds for legal abortion.
October’s ruling sparked weeks of mass protests, but so far it has had no legal effect – although women’s reproductive rights activists said hospitals were already canceling procedures, fearing reprisals from authorities.
After the court issued its statement on Wednesday, Poland’s right-wing nationalist government published it in a government newspaper. These formal steps mean that a near-total abortion ban is now in place.
“The justification of the Constitutional Court’s verdict is a growing drama for women,” Adam Bodnar, Poland’s human rights commissioner, or ombudsman, said on Thursday.
“The state wants to further limit their rights, risk their lives and sentence them to torture,” added Bodnar, who is independent of the government. “This offensive is opposed by civil society.”
Amnesty International called it “a terrible day for women and girls in Poland” and said bans never prevent abortions.
“Instead, they only serve to harm women’s health by driving abortions underground or forcing women to travel to foreign countries to access the abortion treatments they need and are entitled to.” , said Esther Major, Amnesty’s senior research adviser.
Poland’s conservative ruling Law and Justice party has been trying for a long time to further restrict abortion rights. Previous attempts to legislate to do so sparked mass protests on the streets, prompting lawmakers to shelve those plans.
The Constitutional Court consists primarily of people appointed by Law and Justice, who have ruled on a motion brought by party legislators.
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