Bitter divide over abortion

Catholic bishops have won support from Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party for their campaign for a total ban on abortion, writes Josef Pazderka.

In a letter read in all parishes last Sunday, the bishops claimed the current law – one of the strictest in Europe – is “an unacceptable compromise”. The Prime Minister, Beata Szydlo, has voiced her support for the bishops’ stance. The current law, dating from 1993, allows abortion only in cases of rape or incest, when continuing the pregnancy poses a risk to the mother’s physical health or if the foetus is severely deformed.

Thousands of pro-abortion demonstrators took to the streets of Warsaw and other cities last Sunday. Between 700 and 1,800 abortions take place in Poland each year. Feminist groups estimate up to 150,000 women have illegal or cross-border  abortions.