The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) on Thursday (13th) accused Poland of “violating the right to respect for private life” following the case of a woman who was forced to have an abortion abroad in 2020, due to unclear laws at the time.
The woman was pregnant with a fetus with Down syndrome. A 1993 Polish law allowed abortions in cases of abnormalities in the fetus, but the Constitutional Court ruled on October 22, 2020, that the practice violates the constitution. The decision sparked a series of demonstrations in the country, but did not come into effect until January 27, 2021.
After the Constitutional Court’s announcement, the woman, who was 15 weeks pregnant, traveled to the Netherlands and had her pregnancy terminated at a private clinic, fearing that she would no longer be able to obtain a legal abortion in her home country.
European judges “unanimously” condemned Poland for violating the “right to respect for private life” guaranteed under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The European Court considered women to be “directly affected” by the evolution of the law.
compensation
“The Court considers that the interference with the exercise of the applicant’s rights stems from the highly uncertain situation that existed between the Constitutional Court’s decision in 2020 and its decision in 2021.” This lack of clarity was further exacerbated “by the lack of transitional measures and the COVID-19 pandemic,” the text emphasizes.
Poland must pay 1,495 euros for property damage and 15,000 euros for moral damages. “This is a fair decision, the only one possible,” Natalia Broniarczyk from the NGO Aborziny Dream Team reacted. She said that since the Constitutional Court’s ruling, “at least seven women a day visit foreign clinics for abortions.”
“While we celebrate this decision, we are still searching for the resources needed to support the women who call us every day,” said Mara Clark of Supporting Abortion for All (SAFE).
At the end of 2023, the European Court of Justice already convicted Warsaw in a similar case. The Strasbourg-based ECtHR is the court responsible for adjudicating violations of the European Convention on Human Rights in the 46 countries that have ratified the convention.
with agency
About The Author
