Abortion in Poland: in the face of restrictions, associations help pregnant Polish women
Audio 01:19
A hospital in Wroclaw, Poland in 2014 (Illustrative image).
© AFP / Natalia Dobryszycka
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
Nearly 32,000 women asked for help in 2020 to have an abortion, from the association Abortement sans frontières.
Figures which have increased considerably, the association said in a press release on Friday, December 10, one year after the ban on abortion in Poland in the event of a serious malformation of the fetus.
But even in these legally permitted situations, it is sometimes difficult to have an abortion in Polish hospitals.
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With our correspondent in Warsaw,
Sarah Bakaloglou
A few weeks ago, a Polish woman discovered that her fetus had a malformation of the skull.
The law prevents her from having an abortion and despite a deterioration in the mental health of the young woman, noted by psychiatrists, the hospital still refuses to perform the abortion in violation of the law this time.
This case is not unique according to Antonina Lewandowska of the Federation of Women and Family Planning: “
If you don't have contacts in the system, accessing abortion is extremely difficult in Poland.
Fortunately, we know of hospitals that respect the law and empathize with patients.
But if you are isolated, it is difficult.
"
The fear of Catholic fundamentalists
To justify its decision, the hospital notably presented a document from Ordo Iuris, a Catholic fundamentalist organization, assuring that depression is not a threat to women's health.
"
Most doctors in Poland fear being targeted by fundamentalists, they are also afraid of being prosecuted,"
explains
Antonina Lewandowska
.
This is also what the doctors of this hospital explained.
And then there is also a certain group of doctors who do not want to perform abortions anyway, and who use the current situation to justify it.
"
This year, the NGO still managed to help nearly 300 women to have a legal abortion, highlighting the danger to the mental health of the mother.
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To read also: Law on abortion: Poland in shock after the death of a pregnant woman
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