Published: 14.07.2022
On August 30, 1996, the Parliament passed an amendment to the law on family planning, which allowed abortion when a pregnant woman is in difficult living conditions or in a difficult personal situation. It was necessary for the woman to submit a written statement and consult with a primary care physician or other authorized person than the one who was to perform the abortion. An abortion could be performed if the woman maintained her intention 3 days after the consultation. The amendment entered into force on January 4, 1997.
On May 28, 1997, the Constitutional Tribunal found that the provision introducing this premise was inconsistent with the constitutional provisions upheld by the so-called The Little Constitution of 1992, by the fact that "legalizes the termination of pregnancy without sufficient justification by the need to protect another value, right or constitutional freedom, and uses undefined criteria for this legalization, thus violating constitutional guarantees for human life. Moreover, in the justification to this judgment, he expressed the view that the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, adopted on April 2, 1997, confirms in Art. 38 the legal protection of human life. The constitutional basis on which the Constitutional Tribunal based its ruling was thus confirmed and clearly articulated in the [new] Constitution of the Republic of Poland ”. The provisions concerning this condition expired on December 23, 1997.
· The high-level debate of the United Nations General Assembly, the annual meeting of heads of state and government, will begin in New York.
· This meeting is an opportunity for Polish representatives to confirm internationally that there is no right to abortion.
· This position would be important in view of the UN resolution on access to justice for victims of sexual violence adopted in early September.
· On 2 September 2022, the 99th plenary meeting of the United Nations General Assembly approved the 'International Cooperation on Access to Justice, Remedies and Assistance for Survivors of Sexual Violence', which promotes abortion, reproductive rights and gender-based language.
· Only Nigeria, supported by more than thirty delegations mainly from Africa and the Middle East, called for changes to the language on sexual and reproductive health and rights that would allow abortion.
· Negotiations on the UN resolution "Access to justice for victims of sexual violence" are coming to an end.
· It aims to promote the so-called safe abortion as a human right to "ensure the promotion and protection of the human rights of all women and their sexual and reproductive health".
· The Ordo Iuris Institute has provided the European Commission with a legal opinion on a new EU initiative to protect global health.
· The project, which is planned to be adopted still in 2022, implements an agenda identical to the WHO pandemic treaty and the proposals of the Conference on the Future of Europe.
· The actions for health announced by the European Commission include access to abortion and global health policy governance.
© 2016 ORDO IURIS - Instytut Na Rzecz Kultury Prawnej
