Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
THE the European Union parliament voted on Wednesday in favor of a system that would allow women from countries restricting abortion to terminate a pregnancy free of charge in another Member State.
The citizens’ initiative “My Voice, My Choice” proposes a fund from the EU budget to cover procedures for people from countries where abortion is almost completely banned, such as Malta and Poland, or places where abortion is difficult to access, such as Italy and Croatia.
While the trend in Europe is towards greater accessibility to abortion, the United Kingdom having decriminalized it and France making it a constitutional freedom, we have seen a rise in popular support for far-right parties, many of which oppose abortion.
After Parliament voted 358 in favor and 202 against, the European Commission must decide in March whether or not to adopt the proposal, even if other citizens’ initiatives have not been entirely successful.
Supporters of the initiative, including abortion rights activists and some MEPs from the left to the center-right, say it should reduce dangerous practices and help women who lack funds for a procedure abroad.
Critics, including far-right and center-right MEPs, say the proposal interferes with national laws and traditional Christian values.
Receive weekly health news
Receive the latest medical news and health information every Sunday.
Under the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) mechanism launched in 2012, the parliamentary vote is only consultative but can influence the Commission’s decision.
“Today we show the world, but above all our citizens, that the EU stands with women. The EU stands for gender equality and the EU is not afraid to respect all human rights, including women’s human rights,” Swedish MEP Abir Al-Sahlani, of the centrist Renew Europe group, told reporters in Strasbourg.
In Poland, where abortion was banned in almost all cases in 2021, abortion rights activists applauded the vote.
“With this resolution, it means that (Polish women) do not have to risk their lives in the Polish health system,” said Mateusz Bieżuński, lawyer for the Polish organization Federa (Foundation for Women and Family Planning).
Jerzy Kwasniewski, of the Polish anti-abortion group Ordo Iuris, said he considered the vote “contrary to European values” and expected the proposal to be rejected by the Commission.
Ahead of Wednesday’s vote, opponents held events with the anti-abortion federation One of Us and the European Center for Law and Justice (ECLJ), a sister organization of the American Center for Law and Justice, which litigates abortion cases and was involved in the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade case.
“It is sad that Europe remains stuck in this ideological approach,” ECLJ director Gregor Puppinck said of the vote. “For us, the fight is above all cultural and, deep down, we are convinced that life will ultimately win. »
