How Polish women fight back for abortion rights

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Polish Government implemented draconian abortion laws, which effectively criminalise pregnancy terminations except under exceptional circumstances, irrevocably threatening the physical and mental wellbeing of the estimated 100,000 Polish women who undergo abortions each year.

After coming across the topic during my studies, I was struck by how women’s rights were coming under threat so close to home. To understand more, I got in touch with the International Council of Polish Women and chatted with their volunteer Inès Roy-Lewanowicz, about how Polish women are defending their rights.

Inès described how recent changes to the political landscape culminated in some of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe. Polish society remains fairly conservative, prompting “peer pressure” for women not to terminate their pregnancies in accordance with long-standing Catholic traditions.

After the conservative Catholic right-wing PiS party came to power in 2015, one of the first items on its agenda was curtailing cis women’s rights. In 2016, the Government proposed outlawing abortion for foetal abnormalities, which accounted for 98% of legal abortions in the country.

This decision effectively banned abortion for all cases apart from threats to the mother’s life, incest or rape. Moreover, this resulted in the criminalisation of medical professionalsproviding such services and the women using them. According to Inès, this enables the State to “use the gynaecologists and doctors as a way to spy on pregnant women”.
Months of protests followed, and the Government appeared to backtrack.

However, recent reforms to the country’s judicial system enabled the Government to instil “allies” into its courts, facilitating changes to existing legislation. Polish judges declared the abortion of foetuses with abnormalities to be unconstitutional in October 2020. Despite months of demonstrations, this became law at the start of 2021.

After international marches for abortion rights in December 2020, participating organisations realised the need for a more formal structure, founding the International Council of Polish Women in March 2021.

Now, it has 40 volunteers and 12 member organisations, hosting conferences and providing support to sister groups. Inès believes the group is a “nice paradox,” as it promotes solidarity in the face of division and distrust. For Inès, the internet has been crucial. Initially, they had “no choice” but to organise online, given both the pandemic and restrictions imposed on protesters, but their virtual protests have paved the way for IRL action and friendship.

Her activism is motivated by her feminist ideals, but also by her desire to see change in Poland and beyond: “Abortion is one of those topics that is really universal. It represents how a society works, how it thinks and how evolved it is”. Hence, it provides a point of commonality that is worth fighting for.

Inès wants to challenge the stereotype of Poland as a “backward country” and instead emphasise that “Poland is also a country with a lot of progressive people who just want something else”.

The dramatic changes Poland has undergone over the last 30 years has led to the current polarisation. Inès’s family experienced the collapse of Communism, followed by rapid restructuring and entry into the EU. This caused many to experience uncertainty and cling to their traditions. The conservative party PiS capitalised on this sentiment to push their anti-abortion agenda as part of "defending the traditional family" and maintaining the status-quo - a recurrent theme in populist parties across Europe.

Progressives like Inès aim to counter this populist narrative, inspiring the hope for change. Speaking to Inès made me realise that the topic is more nuanced than I first thought and that despite immense restrictions, women can and will always fight back.

Lara is completing a Masters in Contemporary European Studies and is interested in journalism, women’s rights and European politics. Her interviewee Inès Roy-Lewanowicz, a volunteer at the International Council of Polish Women. Look out for Lara’s interview with Inès in full on our website soon. To learn more about the International Council’s work, please visit their website https://polonijnaradakobiet.org/ and follow them on Twitter @polradakobiet.