On October 22, 2020, the Polish pseudo-Constitutional Tribunal issued a ruling, in which it stated that the abortion performed for embryopathological reasons (severe and irreversible fetal impairment) was incompatible with the Polish Constitution. The politically-driven sentence has tightened the already extremely restrictive abortion law, condemning Polish women to almost the total lack of access to legal abortion (with exceptions of rape, incest, and when the woman’s life is at risk). The restrictions affecting women in Poland were proceeded by the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The decision led to a massive outbreak of women's protests across Poland against the ruling party, the clergy, and the Catholic Church, as well as the Catholic fundamentalists (Ordo Iuris) who initiated the restrictions of women's rights. As the days go by, the protests are becoming stronger and stronger, spreading across the country, and many places around the world. The women united under the slogan #Tojestwojna
Text: Małgorzata Białobrzycka
Special thanks: Aleksanda Szymczyk