On Friday, the Sejm received a new draft amendment to the Penal Code, which assumes partial decriminalization of termination of pregnancy with the woman's consent and decriminalization of assistance in self-induced abortion. The draft was signed by MPs from the Left, the Civic Coalition, Poland 2050 and a PSL MP. The deputy head of the Left caucus, Marcelina Zawisza, expressed hope that during the summer holidays “there will be talks in the government about how this draft will find its majority”.
The justification for the bill states that it aims to “partially decriminalize the termination of pregnancy with the woman's consent in violation of the provisions of the Act on family planning, protection of the human fetus and the conditions for the admissibility of terminating pregnancy, and to decriminalize assistance in unassisted abortion through changes to the Penal Code.”
Parliament against the project
In mid-July, the Sejm did not pass an amendment to the Penal Code, authored by the Left, concerning partial decriminalization of abortion. The bill was rejected by votes PISConfederation, majority PSL. Three KO MPs did not vote: Roman GiertychWaldemar Sługocki and Krzysztof Grabczuk.
The project assumed the repeal of two provisions of Article 152 of the Penal Code, which stipulate a three-year prison sentence for terminating a pregnancy in cases not permitted by law, and for inciting to do so. It also introduced penalties of restriction of liberty or imprisonment for up to five years in the case of abortion, when the pregnancy lasts longer than 12 weeks. It decriminalizes abortion after the 12th week of pregnancy in the event of serious fetal defects that threaten the life and health of the woman.
The chairwoman of the Left club, Anna Maria Żukowska, announced that MPs would submit a bill on this matter for the second time.
The draft amendment to the Penal Code, submitted on Friday, was signed by the entire Left caucus, some members of parliament from the KO caucus, four members of parliament from the Poland 2050-Trzecia Droga caucus: Ewa Szymanowska, Elżbieta Burkiewicz, Adam Luboński and Aleksandra Leo, as well as MP Agnieszka Kłopotek as the only member of the PSL-Trzecia Droga caucus.
Zawisza: the project will be put together over and over again
The deputy head of the Left club, Marcelina Zawisza, asked by TVN24 reporter Małgorzata Mielcarek whether the fact that the bill was signed by MPs from other clubs meant that it would have a better chance of being adopted by the Sejm, said that she hoped so.
– I also hope that this holiday period will be the moment when talks will be held in the government regarding this project finding its majority, so that it can enter into force, because this is one of the greatest promises that all those people who now hold public offices promised Polish women, that is, that this barbaric law that was under Law and Justice will be changed – she said. She noted that “we are already nine months later and unfortunately nothing has changed”.
She added that if someone thinks that they voted once on the bill and the issue will disappear, “we have very bad news for these people, especially for Mr. (Władysław) Kosiniak-Kamysz – this bill will be submitted over and over again and he will have to speak out on it for the next three years.”
Main image source: PAP/Leszek Szymanski