Motion for a Resolution by the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality
My body, my choice: Following the abortion ban in Poland and Hungary, birth control has become increasingly inaccessible and unsafe across the EU. How can the EU safeguard reproductive rights, while honouring the sovereignty of Member States?
Submitted by: Dominique Iris De Boer (NL), Marika De Piante-Vicin (IT), Anna Huitema (NL), Selen Kaçmaz (NL), Savo Bahaddin Muheddin (NL) and Sveva Austoni (Chairperson, IT)
The European Youth Parliament,
- Deeply concerned by Poland’s recent implementation of policies restricting the right to abortion by targeting people seeking to undergo one,
- Pointing out that banning or putting restrictions on sexual and reproductive healthcare services is a violation of human rights, as it contributes to increasing unsafe abortion practices and forced pregnancies,
- Considering that sexuality education is optional in eight Member States,
- Taking into account that sexuality education in most Member States does not follow the comprehensive guidelines of UNESCO, which aims to eradicate stigma surrounding abortions and inform on sexual and reproductive health (SRH),
- Noting with deep concern that people coming from lower socioeconomic backgrounds or minority groups are more affected by the inaccessibility of SRH centres and treatments,
- Acknowledging with regret Member States’ lack of economic assistance for SRH supplies and birth control, such as insurance coverage or reimbursement of costs;
- Reminds Member States of the Treaty of the European Union and the Treaty of Lisbon expecting them to respect human rights;
- Urges Member States to respect the principles of Goals 3 and 4 of the 2030 Sustainability Agenda;
- Condemns Member States that maintain mandatory counseling and waiting periods before accessing abortion as violation of human rights;
- Requests the European Research Council to research the harmful effects of abortion bans;
- Asks the Council of Europe to collaborate with the Centre for Reproductive Rights in the creation of an international sexual and reproductive health rights convention aiming to create an agenda on reproductive health and sexuality education;
- Encourages Member States to follow the UNESCO guidelines on Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE);
- Recommends Member States to reduce the price or reimburse the costs of contraceptives through health insurance systems and provide free abortions for all individuals;
- Instructs Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE) to financially support Member States following the aforementioned guidelines, enabling them to partially or completely reimburse costs of SRH services;
- Calls upon the Directorate-General on Budget (DG BUDG) to introduce biannual checkups on the redirection of funds given to Member States with the aid of statistics provided by Eurostat.