FEMM

“My Body My Choice: While sexual and reproductive rights are widely acknowledged as human rights in many Member States, women continue to witness limitations or denials of their access to reproductive healthcare. Considering the legal restrictions on abortion in Member States like Malta and Poland, as well as the persistent practical barriers in other Member…

Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality

By Imme Bosman (NL)

“My Body My Choice: While sexual and reproductive rights are widely acknowledged as human rights in many Member States, women continue to witness limitations or denials of their access to reproductive healthcare. Considering the legal restrictions on abortion in Member States like Malta and Poland, as well as the persistent practical barriers in other Member States, how can the EU collaborate with its Member States to enhance accessibility to abortion?”

Executive Summary 

Many women have needed or will need to undergo an abortion at some point in their lives for a variety of reasons, for example due to their financial situation, to a pregnancy which resulted from rape or incest, or to medical reasons. But what if access to abortion is restricted or non-existent? In some Member States it is nearly impossible to get an abortion. This results in women going great lengths to end their pregnancy, often with recourse to dangerous methods. Nearly 78000 women die every year due to unsafe abortions. With that in mind, how can the EU make abortions more accessible, while still taking into account the integrity of Member States’ health policy?

Introduction and Relevance of the Topic 

According to the United Nation (UN) Population Fund, an estimated 121 million unintended pregnancies took place between 2015 and 2019, with over 60% of these ending in abortion, and more than 70 million of these procedures taking place every year. 

Access to abortion is less restricted in some Member States than in others. In the Netherlands, for instance, obtaining an abortion is possible upon request, and the costs of the procedure are subsidised by the government. In Poland, on the contrary, access to abortion is heavily restricted. Abortion is criminalised for the most part and only allowed in cases of rape, incest, or if having the baby endangers the mother’s health or life. Restricting abortions leads to an increase in unsafe and illegal abortions. 145% of abortions worldwide are unsafe, one third of which is performed under the least safe conditions2.78,000 women die each year as a result of an unsafe abortion. In 2016, according to the Federation for Women and Family Planning (FEDERA), there were 150,000 illegal abortions in Poland. Furthermore, only 1055 women nationwide were able to obtain this procedure legally. Undergoing illegal abortion procedures in Poland can lead to a jail term between

three months and five years. Those who assist in or encourage an illegal abortion also risk being incarcerated. 

The importance of access to abortion touches upon public health and welfare, but also gender equality. According to the UN reproductive rights constitute a women’s and human right. There are many circumstances where an abortion can be beneficial for a woman, for example when they do not have the ability to financially support a child or to avoid becoming a single mother. Moreover, a young maternal age can heavily limit one’s future prospects, since young mothers are often forced to quit their education in order to provide for their child. Finally, many women opt to voluntarily end their pregnancy due to the drastic change having a child would represent in their lives. 

No) abortion in Poland | Cartoon Movement
© Cartoon by Marteen Wolterink on Cartoon Movement

Fundamental Challenges

Legal Variability

One of the primary challenges to guaranteeing safe abortion access across the EU is the legal variability amongst Member States regarding abortion rights and regulations. While some countries’ legislation allows abortion on request, others have restrictive laws in place which only permit abortion under limited circumstances. In Poland, for instance, abortion is heavily criminalised, and undergoing or supporting an illegal abortion can lead to a jail term. Women are only allowed an abortion in case of rape, incest, or if the mother health is at risk. These reasons made up only two percent of legal terminations at the time of legislation. These strict laws lead to an increase in unsafe abortions, which often harms women’s health. In 2016, 150.000 illegal abortions were carried out in Poland, endangering the safety of the women involved. In the Netherlands, on the contrary, obtaining an abortion is possible upon request, and the costs of the procedure are subsidised by the government. The Netherlands is also the country with the longest possible requesting period. Women can request an abortion for the first 24 weeks of the pregnancy.3 Malta has the strictest regulations: a woman is only allowed to get an abortion if the mother’s life is at risk. 

The European Union cannot create legislation obligating Member States to enhance the accessibility of abortion, as written in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. It states that the European Union has no legal influence on health policies in Member States, abortion included. The EU does, however, have the power to complement Member States’ actions towards promoting health and preventing damage toward physical and mental health, but they cannot enforce any legislation that is health related. 

Cross Border access to abortion

The timeframe within which a woman can request an abortion varies between Member States. In countries such as Germany and Italy, women can request an abortion until 12 weeks after their last menstrual cycle or the conception. In Spain an abortion can be requested within 14 weeks. Many women need more time than their country grants them, usually because they have not found out they are pregnant yet, due to an irregular menstrual cycle or a change in contraceptive method. As a result, people in need of abortions often find themselves forced to travel across borders to obtain this procedure. This poses  socio-economic disparities in abortion access, making it so that undergoing abortion procedures after a certain time frame can be more accessible to individuals with more financial resources. Governments and insurance companies often do not cover the medical costs associated with getting an abortion abroad, and additionally women have to cover the costs associated with their travel and accommodations. Many women cannot afford that, especially since lack of financial stability is one of the most common reasons for abortion. Language barriers and unclear websites also make it so many women struggle to find proper information about obtaining this  procedure abroad. 

Pro-life movement

Abortion is a very controversial topic and many people are against the legalisation and practice of abortions. Some of these groups argue that abortion is murder and “the most massive transgression of Human Rights happening today.”The pro-life movement mainly consists of conservative and strict religious groups. They organise protests against abortion rights and often approach women seeking an abortion at clinics, actively harassing them and trying to persuade them not to go forward with the procedure. Religious movements also often stand in the way of easing abortion laws. The Polish government, for example, has ties to the catholic church. This partially accounts for the fight against abortion rights in Poland. There are countries, such as Portugal, where abortion is technically legal, but an abortion is still very difficult to obtain, because there are so many pro-life doctors.

Key Stakeholders

  • In the context of enhancing accessibility to abortion within the EU, key stakeholders include:The Member States: Member States within the EU are responsible for developing and implementing laws and policies related to reproductive healthcare4, including access to abortion services. Member State’s governments may vary in their approaches to abortion laws and regulations. The EU has no definitive power over their legislation concerning health policies, such as abortion accessibility, as the competence to legislate over health is exclusive to Member States.
  • Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST): the DG JUST is a department within the European Commission. One of the topics it focuses on is gender equality and women’s rights. This Directorate-General is responsible for developing, implementing and managing EU policy, law, and funding programmes surrounding this topic, which includes abortion. One of their key initiatives is the European Institute for Gender Equality. This institute has some articles published on abortion rights and it plans events to raise awareness for abortion rights.

Measures in Place

The European Union has a couple of measures in place, aimed to promote and improve access to abortion services across member states. 

Outlook

Given the danger to women’s health due to the lack of access to legal abortions in some Member States, it is important to reflect upon how the EU can motivate non-profit organisations to assist women in countries with strict legislations surrounding abortion, to avoid unsafe abortions. Taking into account the scope of its competences, what can the EU do to help provide easy access to safe abortions in all Member States? How do socioeconomic factors, including income and geographic location, affect access to abortion services, particularly in Member States where abortion is illegal or heavily restricted?

Links for Further Research

  • “Poland’s strict abortion laws leave few safe options for women.” Watch this video that talks about the effects of the strict polish abortion laws. 
  1.  Unsafe and illegal abortions: A procedure for terminating a pregnancy performed by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment not in conformity with minimal medical standards, or both. ↩︎
  2. Abortions under the least safe conditions: These are performed by untrained people, using dangerous methods. ↩︎
  3.  This is a clear overview of different abortion laws in Member States. Please note that the laws in Finland have recently changed. ↩︎
  4. Consolidated version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union; Article 168, paragraph 7 ↩︎