Poland: Thousands protest against abortion ban
Right-wing government seeks to tighten regulations in line with the teachings of the Catholic Church

Thousands of people protested in Poland yesterday against government plans to ban abortion, with demonstrators in Warsaw waving coat hangers in a grim reference to back-street terminations.
Access to abortions is already strictly controlled in the country. Women can be granted one only if their own health is at risk, their foetus is terminally ill or severely disabled, or if they are pregnant by criminally proven rape or incest.
Now the ruling Law and Justice party looks set to introduce the total ban favoured by the Catholic Church, to which it has strong links.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski and Prime Minister Beata Szydlo have both said they will vote for a ban and they believe a majority of their MPs will follow suit. Law and Justice controls both houses of parliament.
Kaczynski said that, as a Catholic, he is "subject to the teachings of bishops" on the issue.
The demonstration is just the latest of several mass protests since Law and Justice came into power last year. Its socially conservative government has been criticised by international rights groups and other governments, says the Wall Street Journal.
The party has become increasingly autocratic, taking over the state broadcaster and trying to reshape the country's constitutional court, which it said was hampering its ability to govern.
The demonstrations in Warsaw yesterday were supported by opposition parties. One banner read: "Abortion for the government."
Marcelina Zawisza, of the socialist Razem party, said: "We can't agree for women to be forced to live nine months aware that they'll give birth to a foetus without a head, lungs or heart. The UN say it clearly: it's torture for women."
The legislation banning terminations was drafted by Ordo Iuris, a group of conservative Catholic lawyers, and endorsed by the Conference of Polish Episcopacy.
The lawyers are also pressing for a ban on same-sex marriage, also a policy promoted by the Catholic Church.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - Pam Bondi, retirement planning, and more
By The Week US
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
By Abby Wilson
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
How Poland became Europe's military power
The Explainer Warsaw has made its armed forces a priority as it looks to protect its borders and stay close to the US
By Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, The Week UK
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK