The “unjust” conviction of a Polish activist charged with helping a woman obtain an abortion must be overturned, Amnesty International has said.
Justyna Wydrzyńska, founder of the ‘Abortion Dream Team’ organization, was found guilty in March 2023 of providing a woman with tablets to terminate her pregnancy.
The feminist campaigner’s appeal against her conviction is set to be heard on Thursday.
Her original court appearances came during the rule of Poland’s previous government, led by the socially conservative Law and Justice Party (PiS).
Monica Costa Riba from Amnesty International said that “Wydrzyńska is thought to be the first human rights activist in Europe to be prosecuted for providing abortion pills” and that she “must be the last.”
“Justyna Wydrzyńska should have never been prosecuted, let alone convicted—no one should be criminalized for helping pregnant people access essential health care,” she added, ahead of the appeal.
During its eight-year rule, PiS was often criticized by human rights groups for limiting women’s rights in Poland through stringent anti-abortion laws.
Under current Polish law, which is one of the most restrictive in Europe, abortions can only be performed in cases of rape, incest or where the pregnant woman's life is in danger. Any person or doctor who facilitates an abortion that does not meet these criteria may face up to three years in prison.
The feminist campaigner’s appeal against her conviction is set to be heard on Thursday.
Her original court appearances came during the rule of Poland’s previous government, led by the socially conservative Law and Justice Party (PiS).
Monica Costa Riba from Amnesty International said that “Wydrzyńska is thought to be the first human rights activist in Europe to be prosecuted for providing abortion pills” and that she “must be the last.”
“Justyna Wydrzyńska should have never been prosecuted, let alone convicted—no one should be criminalized for helping pregnant people access essential health care,” she added, ahead of the appeal.
During its eight-year rule, PiS was often criticized by human rights groups for limiting women’s rights in Poland through stringent anti-abortion laws.
Under current Polish law, which is one of the most restrictive in Europe, abortions can only be performed in cases of rape, incest or where the pregnant woman's life is in danger. Any person or doctor who facilitates an abortion that does not meet these criteria may face up to three years in prison.
PiS’s hardline stance sparked the formation of the anti-government ‘Women’s Strike’ movement, which helped the opposition socially liberal Civic Coalition (KO) win the 2023 general elections with a promise to increase access to abortion.
But KO, which leads a multi-party coalition, has made little progress in changing the law amid opposition from its partners in the agrarian PSL party and the continued presence of the PiS-backed President Andrzej Duda, who has a veto.
Wydrzyńska, like many other women in Poland, says she feels disillusioned by the lack of progress on women’s rights.
“We, activists and those who need our help, are where we were during the PiS government. [KO’s leader] Prime Minister Tusk used us as instruments in his campaign, but he has shown complete disregard of the issue in his actions,” she said in an interview for Onet.pl.
Although it’s been unable to change the law so far, Tusk’s government has introduced new guidelines aimed at changing the way the rules are applied.
But KO, which leads a multi-party coalition, has made little progress in changing the law amid opposition from its partners in the agrarian PSL party and the continued presence of the PiS-backed President Andrzej Duda, who has a veto.
Wydrzyńska, like many other women in Poland, says she feels disillusioned by the lack of progress on women’s rights.
“We, activists and those who need our help, are where we were during the PiS government. [KO’s leader] Prime Minister Tusk used us as instruments in his campaign, but he has shown complete disregard of the issue in his actions,” she said in an interview for Onet.pl.
Although it’s been unable to change the law so far, Tusk’s government has introduced new guidelines aimed at changing the way the rules are applied.
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