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Poland

Articles by Poland

Notonemore
13 June 2023

‘Not a single one more’. The death of Dorota reignites pro-abortion care protests across Poland

Protests will be held across Poland on June 14 as the news of yet another woman losing her life shakes Polish society. The 33-year-old woman, identified only as Dorota, went to the hospital after her water broke in the fifth month of her pregnancy. She died there of sepsis three days later. She was told to lie in her hospital bed with her legs up because this might help restore amniotic fluid and was given limited medical care and information about her state. No one from the medical staff explained to her or her family the real danger she was in and that there was little to no chance that the fetus would survive. Sepsis develops very rapidly in situations such as Dorota’s, yet lifesaving medical care was delayed and Dorota and her family were denied the right to know that abortion care would have been possible and would have saved Dorota from a death sentence. Prosecutors and the patients’ ombudsman in Poland are investigating the death of Dorota amid the family’s accusations that the doctors kept them in the dark and didn't take the necessary steps to save her. Two years ago, Poland's conservative government severely restricted access to abortion care, but the law does allow for doctors to intervene and perform an abortion if the woman's health or life is in danger. Yet, we have seen time and time again with the cases of Iza, Agnieszka, Anna, and now Dorota, that this law is killing women and hurting families.  Denying access to abortion care is a sinister form of gender-based violence which can amount to femicide. This law has real consequences on women, life and death consequences, and it’s beyond inexplicable how the ruling party can continue to cause so much needless suffering. But make no mistake, doctors continue to have the responsibility to protect the health of women. Fear of prosecution needs to stop being used as an excuse in a country where no doctor has ever been the target of law enforcement in cases where abortion care was provided when the life or health of women were at risk. Yes, those holding political power are responsible for violating women’s rights and causing this suffering, but doctors who do not help a person in need are complicit. The wellbeing of patients should come first not only when it comes to abortion care, but regarding all reproductive matters. Gynaecological and obstetric violence is widespread in Poland and we want doctors to speak out and work towards social change. Their silence and lack of action, their betrayal of the trust patients place in them, leads to tragedy. We ask doctors to stop sitting on the sidelines while their patients are suffering and even dying. And we ask the government to lift this draconian virtual ban on abortion care. See you in the streets.

Justyna ADT
15 March 2023

Poland: Justyna gave her closing speech during trial

Justyna Wydrzyńska was charged with supporting Ania, a woman in an abusive relationship, to access abortion pills. A survivor herself of a similar situation to Ania, she took compassionate action to help the woman. Justyna’s efforts were reported to the police by Ania’s controlling husband.  Ania was denied abortion care, but the stress caused her to miscarry. Justyna, a member of Abortion Without Borders and the Abortion Dream Team has been facing a legal battle for more than one year for facilitating an abortion that didn’t happen. Her closing speech in court follows: .... I stand here today because I gave someone my abortion pills. I sent them to another woman. It is an undeniable fact. I’m facing 3 years in prison. I didn’t do it out of my own initiative, because I do not distribute abortion pills. I knew that at that time, Ania was desperate. And I had a set of pills for my own use. The pills which I had for my own use, which I sent to Ania, are now the safest way to terminate a pregnancy in Poland. They are widely used in Europe and across the entire world by millions of people. They do not require anaesthesia, pose no complication risks, are safer than simple medical procedures. I know that from the reports of World Health Organization, which recommends unrestricted access to these pills, mifepristone and misoprostol. There are no contraindications against this. I sent my pills to Ania because I knew that she was in an abusive relationship - just like me a few years earlier. We were both controlled, emotionally blackmailed, lonely. We both have children and we wanted to protect them. I also experienced violence in a relationship. I was controlled, subjected to financial, physical and emotional abuse which were ubiquitous in “my” home. Us women, who experienced domestic violence, know what must be sacrificed to protect the safety of our children above all. I have three kids. Mothers in abusive relationships will do whatever they can for their children to sleep peacefully, for themselves to escape the constant, destructive tension.Us, who survive violence, keep our experiences a secret. We are ashamed of our lack of courage to fight for freedom, of allowing someone to control us. Often we stay - by choice and out of necessity. These obvious facts are tightly linked with the need to control one’s own reproductive autonomy. Living in abuse we often don’t realise that we have lost control over our bodies and the remainder of our lives. Because someone in our home decides for us, often against our will. I got pregnant by a man who hurt me, an abuser, and I terminated this pregnancy because I did not want it. My abortion made me realise I can control my own life, and I can regain that control. I felt that I can make my own decisions, and the fear I felt was not just for my body, but also for freedom which is a superior human right. I got divorced in 2009, after 11 years of marriage. I did it to save myself and my children. But the memories of abuse I went through are still present within me. This is not something you can just forget. And I do not wish this experience upon anyone. My own abortion was a breakthrough for me. I wouldn’t want to live in a world in which any woman is deprived of access to reliable information and simple human support. This has been motivating me in my activism, in my social work. For me this trial is symbolically a trial for anyone who ever provided support to a person in need.  I feel I do not stand here alone. My friends have my back, but so do hundreds of women whom I haven’t yet had the chance to meet. Here, in this courtroom, we touch upon basic human rights, such as the right to self-determination. I have the support of numerous human rights organizations with their vast knowledge on these issues: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. Their opinion is clear: I am a human rights defender. And they are not alone in saying this. Catholics for Choice, Belgian Parliament, more than 80 members of the European parliament, high ranking rapporteurs on women’s rights have all approached the Polish parliament stating that I should not be prosecuted. I should never be oppressed for my work protecting women’s life and health. Similarly, the International Foundation of Gynecology and Obstetrics demands my exoneration and stresses that my work is not only safe, but also endorsed by the World Health Organization.  Your honor knows about this, because numerous organisations filed amicus curiae letters in my case. These are not just expert opinions, but also the voices of hundreds of thousands of people who signed a petition to the prosecutor’s office. They all say the same. This trial should never have happened. I am thankful for this support. Yet I am here, Your Honor, sitting in the dock. And this last year has been very difficult for me, my family, for those close to me. I feel I am innocent. What I heard here in this room, the details of Anna’s situation, only convinced me that my actions were right. It made me realize that I should trust my intuition and take the risk of helping those who need it. I would never wish for any woman to be alone in these tough situations, without support, with her family acting against her. I believe that helping another person who asks for support as they fight for their freedom is our duty. It is what makes us human. And I will not abandon it, I will not be ashamed of it or believe that it is a crime. Your honor, we live in a country which doesn’t respect women. The polish anti-abortion law from 1993 was one of the most restrictive in Europe, because it forced people in unwanted pregnancies to have their abortions in secret. For them, activist organizations were the only respite from dangerous methods or peddlers. Initiatives like Abortion Without Borders are doing work which should have been the state’s job for years as part of the healthcare system. I’ve been working in this field for 16 years and witness how the state’s decisions and rulings worsen women’s situation. The anti-abortion law is not only cruel; it is fictitious. The law doesn’t stop people with unwanted pregnancies from terminating them. This is not my opinion - that’s what all abortion research shows, around the world.  A woman who doesn’t want to be pregnant thinks pragmatically; how to access abortion, how much it will cost, can she afford it. And she will have that abortion, regardless of the law and regardless of how safe the method she uses will be. I thought this way, so did Anna, so do 100 000 women in Poland every year, so do Ukrainian refugees. And they are right. After October 22nd, 2020, when the pseudo-tribunal ruled in favor of further restricting abortion access, women whose pregnancies have fetal abnormalities started to go to Netherlands for help. There, it is possible to terminate until the 22nd week of pregnancy. Women with diagnosed fetal abnormalities ask: “do I have to go to a foreign country, feel like a fugitive, why can’t I do it in a hospital here, and then go home as soon as possible?”. Doctors in Dutch clinics simply say: “Polish women are the largest group of foreign patients in our clinics. They have special needs, they are often scarred by their experience with polish hospitals. We need to calm them down and reassure them that they will receive help”. The medical condition of women travelling to Dutch clinics worsens constantly since 2020. There are very many people who need an abortion here and now, who are in danger, not just from the cruel law, medical negligence, cowardice of doctors, but also from being in abusive relationships, under constant supervision. Being free from an unwanted pregnancy allows them to be free from abuse in general.  That’s what it was for me, it was a factor in realising how I am being confined, how much I need freedom and the ability to decide for myself. I wanted the same for Anna. I wanted her to be free and control her life and body.  I didn’t want her to risk her life when the solution was so simple and medically safe  I do not want anyone to go alone through a dangerous process of an unsafe abortion when it is possible to do it safely, without stigma. I don’t want any of us to be forced to abandon her right to freedom and self-determination.   I was driven by the will to help when no one else wanted to or could help. For me, helping Ania was an obvious, decent and honest thing to do. It’s good to be honest, even if it doesn’t always pay off. If I knew more about Ania’s situation, I wouldn’t just have sent her the pills. I would have stayed in touch to support her during the abortion, so she wouldn’t feel alone. So she would have someone who would listen, stay with her, hold her hands. We are here to decide on my guilt. I am not guilty and I will say it out loud: the State is guilty, of abandoning Ania, Iza from Pszczyna, Agnieszka from Częstochowa, and millions of women across the country. I ask the court for acquittal.   Originally published by the Abortion Dream Team here.

Justyna ADT
14 March 2023

Poland: IPPF EN is appalled by the guilty verdict in the case of Justyna Wydrzyńska

Today, the District Court in Warsaw found Justyna Wydrzyńska guilty for helping a woman in an abusive relationship to access abortion pills. She was sentenced to eight months of community service for 30 hours/month and will now have a criminal record. "We are deeply saddened by the decision and outraged by the entire process. Condemning a person for an act of empathy and compassion towards another human being is unconceivable. We are in awe of Justyna’s bravery in the face of 18 months of judicial persecution by an apparatus targeting anyone who dares challenge the state’s immoral attacks on healthcare and human rights", said Irene Donadio of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, European Network (IPPF EN).

Poland
13 December 2022

Poland: Women's rights defenders fighting a broken justice

Women’s rights activist Justyna Wydrzyńska faces up to three years in prison after being charged with providing abortion pills to a woman who wanted them – the first case of its kind in Europe. In 2020, Wydrzyńska, a member of Polish activist group Abortion Dream Team, answered a request for abortion pills from a woman whom she said seemed to be in an abusive relationship and had decided not to go through a full pregnancy. But the abortion never took place – the pills were intercepted by the woman’s husband, who called the police. Wydrzyńska was arrested and charged with facilitating an abortion. Today, she hopes her case will shine a light on Poland’s strict abortion laws – and the way the judicial system is being used to persecute rights defenders who protest them. At least six women are reported to have died after being denied an abortion since Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal imposed a near-total ban on abortion care just over two years ago. At the time, the ruling prompted massive demonstrations across the country. The initially peaceful protesters were met with excessive force from authorities, who used tear gas, pepper spray and physical assault to subdue them. These attacks were followed by arrests and charges for those defending women’s rights.  Today, the judicial persecution of rights defenders in Poland continues. Prosecutors with a political agenda have brought spurious charges against activists, and cases have been heard by judges loyal to the ruling Law and Justice party. We at the International Planned Parenthood Federation European Network (IPPF EN) have spoken to several activists in Poland as part of our Defend the Defenders campaign, which highlights their plight, fundraises for psychological support and legal assistance in court cases, and asks the European Union to take action to protect activists. Wydrzyńska is one such activist. Speaking to IPPF EN, she said: “Empathy shouldn’t be punished, especially when someone is asking you for help. I feel there is only one chance to show that the law is extremely harmful. Even if I get a jail sentence, I am ready. I think this battle is bigger than my freedom.” Under Polish law, people who have abortions are not criminalised, but those who directly help them are. The government and ultra-conservative right-wing groups want harsher punishments for abortion rights activists. They also target family members, partners and friends who try to help women access abortion care. Wydrzyńska says Poland’s Ministry of Justice has appointed a right-wing judge to her case, which has been adjourned twice after a witness failed to attend, with the next hearing scheduled for next month. It has been reported that at the trial, the judge will allow Ordo Iuris – a Polish fundamentalist organisation that campaigns against abortion rights and LGBTIQ rights in the country – to stand with the prosecution to represent the rights of the foetus.   Persecuting rights defenders Activist Marta Lempart was charged under Covid laws – along with two other women, Klementyna Suchanow and Agnieszka Czerederecka-Fabin – for taking part in the 2020 anti-abortion protests. Each woman faces eight years in prison. Lempart said her case has already been tried once and dismissed by a judge due to a lack of evidence. Now, the prosecution is trying again. Lempart has 106 charges brought against her, including offences relating to breaking COVID regulations, blocking traffic, hanging posters, and littering in public. Most of these charges are pending due to a stand-off between Poland and the EU. Poland’s funding from the bloc has been frozen for over a year, amid concerns from the bloc over the judicial independence in the country. If the reforms demanded by the EU come to fruition, charges against activists like Lempart are likely to be dropped – but in the meantime, the toll on activists’ mental health and finances is severe. Speaking to the IPPF EN, Lempart said: “We can’t count on courts to be fair for long as the crackdown of the independent judiciary in Poland is happening at the maximum speed. The judges' removals from the cases and replacements, based on political decisions of the ruling party are a daily occurrence. “The government now aims for full power to decide which judge gets which case, taking overhead positions in all possible courts. Legal fees and misdemeanour fines are also hefty – if prosecutors can’t put people in jail, they want to cripple them financially.” To make matters worse, the political atmosphere created and fostered by the ruling Law and Justice party means many people feel it is acceptable to intimidate rights defenders in other ways. Some activists have been sent death threats and bomb threats by neo-nazi groups, and Lempart was assigned police protection after an escalating threat was made against her life. And alongside her numerous charges, Lempart has also had a libel case filed against her by the ultra-conservative organisation, Ordo Iuris.   Glimmers of hope It is not just activists under attack – journalists, politicians, independent judges and ordinary citizens in Poland also suffer from politicised assaults. In one case, lawmaker Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus faces two charges for participating in a 2020 protest, in which she held up a banner supporting abortion in a church. The prosecutor’s office in the city of Toruń charged Scheuring-Wielgus with ‘offending religious feelings’ and ‘malicious interference with religious worship’, according to Human Rights Watch. The hearing will take place in January, with each offence – for which she has pleaded not guilty – carrying a penalty of up to two years in prison. In another worrying development, Polish freedom fighters seem to have lost an ally due to recent changes in the Ombudsman’s Office, the supposedly neutral body appointed to investigate complaints made against public officials. The ombudsman, Marcin Wiącek, has dismissed his deputy, Hanna Machińska, who was known for protecting the rights of refugees on the Polish-Belarusian border and for intervening on behalf of protesters detained during pro-abortion and pro-LGBTIQ rights’ protests. Machińska will be replaced with Wojciech Brzozowski, a specialist in religious law. Meanwhile, the EU waits for Poland to meet the milestones its commission set for releasing the Cohesion and Covid Recovery Funds, now frozen due to severe breaches of the rule of law and fundamental rights. But MEPs have expressed concern that the commission’s criteria was not enough – and urged the EU council not to release the funds until Poland has fully complied with EU law. Lempart agrees, believing the EU’s approach emboldens the Law and Justice party. She explained: “The milestones are not in compliance with the EU Court of Justice rulings, so the EU is breaking its own laws. “It sends a clear message that they don’t care about the rule of law in Poland, and there is now an attempt to fast-track cases against protesters before these new changes are implemented.” We must ask ourselves – is this the Europe we want to live in, where rights are negotiable, where women are forced through pregnancy, and rights defenders are dragged to court by fundamentalist governments?  But hope remains, and with Polish parliamentary elections coming up next year, people have a chance to push for positive change. Support for liberalising abortion laws has risen from 37% in 2016 to 70% in 2022, while support for same-sex marriage has risen from 18% to 52% over the same time period.  “Moderate conservatism has been hijacked but the Law and Justice party is destroying itself,” said Lempart. “People saw the violence we faced. There has been a huge wave of support from people who don’t want to be part of the anti-women and anti-LGBT+ campaigns. They are too dogmatic, there must be a middle ground. People are moving more towards love and not hate.”   Originally published in Open Democracy. Credit photo: Spacerowiczka

Justyna
07 December 2022

Justyna: ‘I may be sitting alone but I am not alone’

‘They want to leave women alone with their ‘problem,’ says Polish women’s rights defender, Justyna of the ruling ultra-conservative party in Poland.  Justyna, a mother of three, works in an increasingly hostile environment, one in which women’s sexual and reproductive rights (SRHR) are being completely dismantled. Poland has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe, only permitting abortion when the life or health of the pregnant woman is endangered or in the case of rape or incest. On 22 October 2020, the Polish Court went further and ruled that abortions could no longer happen in cases of foetal illness or abnormality. The only way for women who need a safe abortion is to rely on NGOs and women’s rights defenders, like Justyna, who enable self-administrated abortions; a safe and easy way avoid being forced through a pregnancy.

Polish Women's Strike

PWS is a grassroots, independent social movement committed to create Poland for everyone - where rights of women, LGBT+ persons, persons with disabilities, seniors, people with lower income, people of ethnic minorities are respected and secured, with the priority for the right to abortion and other reproductive rights, as a founding issue of their movement.

Contact: Twitter, Instagram.

FEDERA

FEDERA Foundation for Women and Family Planning (formerly the Federation) is a non-governmental organization operating since 1991, fighting for reproductive justice.

FEDERA's mission is advocating for basic human rights, especially the right of women to decide freely whether and when to have children. In FEDERA’s opinion, the possibility to enjoy this right is for women a condition of self-determination, as well as the condition of equalizing the life opportunities of women and men. They are fulfilling our mission through:

  • Providing assistance to women in access to legal abortion in Polish hospitals and providing information on access to abortion care abroad and medical abortion,
  • Intervening in cases of women being refused access to medical services in the field of reproductive health,
  • Providing expert advice via helplines in individual queries addressed by persons in need of access to SRH services,
  • Initiating and supporting activities focusing on women’s right to conscious motherhood,
  • Monitoring the state of reproductive rights,
  • Preparing reports on women’s health and reproductive rights,
  • Promoting knowledge about reproductive health,
  • Advocating for the access to adequate quality of reproductive and sexual health services,
  • Advocating for the liberalization and decriminalization of access to abortion,
  • Promoting knowledge about international mechanisms of human rights protection,
  • Applying to international human rights institutions with the aim of improving the state of human rights observance in Poland, including the right to health,
  • Media campaigns.

Contact: Facebook, Instagram.

defend the defenders
25 October 2022

Polish prosecutors indict women’s human rights defenders and plan to go ahead with another sham trial

Three leading women’s rights defenders are facing eight years in prison in Poland for exercising their right to peaceful protest.  Prosecutors in Warsaw filed the indictment against Marta Lempart, Klementyna Suchanow and Agnieszka Czerederecka-Fabin of the Polish Women’s Strike (Ogólnopolski Strajk Kobiet, OSK), a partner of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, European Network, for allegedly organizing protests during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Massive protests were prompted back in October 2020 by the decision of the illegally appointed Constitutional Tribunal to impose a near-total ban on abortion care. Peaceful protesters were met with excessive force, with authorities using tear gas, pepper spray and physical assault. Now, two years on, women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are still being attacked by Polish authorities, with defenders facing violence from law enforcement and far-right groups, including bomb threats, as well as smear campaigns in state-controlled media, detention and excessive criminal charges orchestrated and encouraged by the government. In the case of the Polish Women’s Strike’s members, these charges include “causing an epidemiological threat”, endangering public health and publicly praising crimes.  The new indictment against the women’s rights defenders came just days before the second anniversary of the near-total ban on abortion, which has killed six women so far. It also comes in the same month that a court hearing was held in the trial of Justyna Wydrzyńska.  Justyna, a member of Abortion Without Borders and the Abortion Dream Team, is facing up to three years in prison for facilitating an abortion that didn’t happen. Her case marks the first in Europe where a WHRD is being prosecuted for helping ensure abortion care by providing abortion pills. Justyna’s trial is ongoing. Irene Donadio of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, European Network, said:

ADT - Justyna Wydrzyńska.jpg
14 July 2022

Poland: Trial drags on of rights defender accused of helping abuse survivor to access abortion

As today’s hearing in the trial of human rights defender Justyna Wydrzyńska is postponed until October 14, we ask Poland’s Justice Ministry to immediately drop the charges against Justyna and stop oppressing woman rights defenders (WRDs). Justyna is charged with supporting Ania, a woman in an abusive relationship, to access abortion pills. A survivor herself of a similar situation to Ania, she took compassionate action to help the woman. Justyna’s efforts were reported to the police by the controlling husband. Ania was denied abortion care, but the stress caused her to miscarry. Now, Justyna, a member of Abortion Without Borders and the Abortion Dream Team, is facing up to three years in prison for facilitating an abortion that didn’t happen. Her case marks the first in Europe in which a WRD is being prosecuted for helping ensure abortion care by providing abortion pills.

Ukraine solidarity
04 July 2022

The French Government commits 60.000 euros to help Ukrainian refugees access abortion care

We wholeheartedly welcome the decision of the French government to support the reproductive safety and freedom of Ukrainian refugees in Poland by financing Abortion Without Borders via IPPF EN. Abortion Without Borders is a civil society initiative working in countries with restrictive laws to help people access abortion care at home with pills or abroad in clinics. The French financial support will specifically be used for the management of help lines and to assist Ukrainian women in Poland travel abroad to receive the care they so desperately need. Concretely, it is expected that the 60.000 euros will help at least 150 women to received safe and legal abortion care outside Poland. Currently, Poland has one of Europe’s most restrictive abortion laws. In practice, it is almost impossible for those eligible for a legal abortion to obtain one. The barriers that have long faced Polish women now also affect Ukrainian refugees. We know that access to emergency contraception and safe abortion care is even more important following the increased threat and terrifying reported incidence of abuse, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and trafficking facing refugees and displaced people. Timing is also of the essence when treating victims of sexual violence and delays can prove dangerous for their physical and mental health. Civil society organizations and ordinary citizens are the ones providing this care to refugees, but this is not properly reflected in many funding schemes. This heroic effort is not sustainable. Without support, these solidarity networks will collapse, with devastating consequences for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.

Notonemore
13 June 2023

‘Not a single one more’. The death of Dorota reignites pro-abortion care protests across Poland

Protests will be held across Poland on June 14 as the news of yet another woman losing her life shakes Polish society. The 33-year-old woman, identified only as Dorota, went to the hospital after her water broke in the fifth month of her pregnancy. She died there of sepsis three days later. She was told to lie in her hospital bed with her legs up because this might help restore amniotic fluid and was given limited medical care and information about her state. No one from the medical staff explained to her or her family the real danger she was in and that there was little to no chance that the fetus would survive. Sepsis develops very rapidly in situations such as Dorota’s, yet lifesaving medical care was delayed and Dorota and her family were denied the right to know that abortion care would have been possible and would have saved Dorota from a death sentence. Prosecutors and the patients’ ombudsman in Poland are investigating the death of Dorota amid the family’s accusations that the doctors kept them in the dark and didn't take the necessary steps to save her. Two years ago, Poland's conservative government severely restricted access to abortion care, but the law does allow for doctors to intervene and perform an abortion if the woman's health or life is in danger. Yet, we have seen time and time again with the cases of Iza, Agnieszka, Anna, and now Dorota, that this law is killing women and hurting families.  Denying access to abortion care is a sinister form of gender-based violence which can amount to femicide. This law has real consequences on women, life and death consequences, and it’s beyond inexplicable how the ruling party can continue to cause so much needless suffering. But make no mistake, doctors continue to have the responsibility to protect the health of women. Fear of prosecution needs to stop being used as an excuse in a country where no doctor has ever been the target of law enforcement in cases where abortion care was provided when the life or health of women were at risk. Yes, those holding political power are responsible for violating women’s rights and causing this suffering, but doctors who do not help a person in need are complicit. The wellbeing of patients should come first not only when it comes to abortion care, but regarding all reproductive matters. Gynaecological and obstetric violence is widespread in Poland and we want doctors to speak out and work towards social change. Their silence and lack of action, their betrayal of the trust patients place in them, leads to tragedy. We ask doctors to stop sitting on the sidelines while their patients are suffering and even dying. And we ask the government to lift this draconian virtual ban on abortion care. See you in the streets.

Justyna ADT
15 March 2023

Poland: Justyna gave her closing speech during trial

Justyna Wydrzyńska was charged with supporting Ania, a woman in an abusive relationship, to access abortion pills. A survivor herself of a similar situation to Ania, she took compassionate action to help the woman. Justyna’s efforts were reported to the police by Ania’s controlling husband.  Ania was denied abortion care, but the stress caused her to miscarry. Justyna, a member of Abortion Without Borders and the Abortion Dream Team has been facing a legal battle for more than one year for facilitating an abortion that didn’t happen. Her closing speech in court follows: .... I stand here today because I gave someone my abortion pills. I sent them to another woman. It is an undeniable fact. I’m facing 3 years in prison. I didn’t do it out of my own initiative, because I do not distribute abortion pills. I knew that at that time, Ania was desperate. And I had a set of pills for my own use. The pills which I had for my own use, which I sent to Ania, are now the safest way to terminate a pregnancy in Poland. They are widely used in Europe and across the entire world by millions of people. They do not require anaesthesia, pose no complication risks, are safer than simple medical procedures. I know that from the reports of World Health Organization, which recommends unrestricted access to these pills, mifepristone and misoprostol. There are no contraindications against this. I sent my pills to Ania because I knew that she was in an abusive relationship - just like me a few years earlier. We were both controlled, emotionally blackmailed, lonely. We both have children and we wanted to protect them. I also experienced violence in a relationship. I was controlled, subjected to financial, physical and emotional abuse which were ubiquitous in “my” home. Us women, who experienced domestic violence, know what must be sacrificed to protect the safety of our children above all. I have three kids. Mothers in abusive relationships will do whatever they can for their children to sleep peacefully, for themselves to escape the constant, destructive tension.Us, who survive violence, keep our experiences a secret. We are ashamed of our lack of courage to fight for freedom, of allowing someone to control us. Often we stay - by choice and out of necessity. These obvious facts are tightly linked with the need to control one’s own reproductive autonomy. Living in abuse we often don’t realise that we have lost control over our bodies and the remainder of our lives. Because someone in our home decides for us, often against our will. I got pregnant by a man who hurt me, an abuser, and I terminated this pregnancy because I did not want it. My abortion made me realise I can control my own life, and I can regain that control. I felt that I can make my own decisions, and the fear I felt was not just for my body, but also for freedom which is a superior human right. I got divorced in 2009, after 11 years of marriage. I did it to save myself and my children. But the memories of abuse I went through are still present within me. This is not something you can just forget. And I do not wish this experience upon anyone. My own abortion was a breakthrough for me. I wouldn’t want to live in a world in which any woman is deprived of access to reliable information and simple human support. This has been motivating me in my activism, in my social work. For me this trial is symbolically a trial for anyone who ever provided support to a person in need.  I feel I do not stand here alone. My friends have my back, but so do hundreds of women whom I haven’t yet had the chance to meet. Here, in this courtroom, we touch upon basic human rights, such as the right to self-determination. I have the support of numerous human rights organizations with their vast knowledge on these issues: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. Their opinion is clear: I am a human rights defender. And they are not alone in saying this. Catholics for Choice, Belgian Parliament, more than 80 members of the European parliament, high ranking rapporteurs on women’s rights have all approached the Polish parliament stating that I should not be prosecuted. I should never be oppressed for my work protecting women’s life and health. Similarly, the International Foundation of Gynecology and Obstetrics demands my exoneration and stresses that my work is not only safe, but also endorsed by the World Health Organization.  Your honor knows about this, because numerous organisations filed amicus curiae letters in my case. These are not just expert opinions, but also the voices of hundreds of thousands of people who signed a petition to the prosecutor’s office. They all say the same. This trial should never have happened. I am thankful for this support. Yet I am here, Your Honor, sitting in the dock. And this last year has been very difficult for me, my family, for those close to me. I feel I am innocent. What I heard here in this room, the details of Anna’s situation, only convinced me that my actions were right. It made me realize that I should trust my intuition and take the risk of helping those who need it. I would never wish for any woman to be alone in these tough situations, without support, with her family acting against her. I believe that helping another person who asks for support as they fight for their freedom is our duty. It is what makes us human. And I will not abandon it, I will not be ashamed of it or believe that it is a crime. Your honor, we live in a country which doesn’t respect women. The polish anti-abortion law from 1993 was one of the most restrictive in Europe, because it forced people in unwanted pregnancies to have their abortions in secret. For them, activist organizations were the only respite from dangerous methods or peddlers. Initiatives like Abortion Without Borders are doing work which should have been the state’s job for years as part of the healthcare system. I’ve been working in this field for 16 years and witness how the state’s decisions and rulings worsen women’s situation. The anti-abortion law is not only cruel; it is fictitious. The law doesn’t stop people with unwanted pregnancies from terminating them. This is not my opinion - that’s what all abortion research shows, around the world.  A woman who doesn’t want to be pregnant thinks pragmatically; how to access abortion, how much it will cost, can she afford it. And she will have that abortion, regardless of the law and regardless of how safe the method she uses will be. I thought this way, so did Anna, so do 100 000 women in Poland every year, so do Ukrainian refugees. And they are right. After October 22nd, 2020, when the pseudo-tribunal ruled in favor of further restricting abortion access, women whose pregnancies have fetal abnormalities started to go to Netherlands for help. There, it is possible to terminate until the 22nd week of pregnancy. Women with diagnosed fetal abnormalities ask: “do I have to go to a foreign country, feel like a fugitive, why can’t I do it in a hospital here, and then go home as soon as possible?”. Doctors in Dutch clinics simply say: “Polish women are the largest group of foreign patients in our clinics. They have special needs, they are often scarred by their experience with polish hospitals. We need to calm them down and reassure them that they will receive help”. The medical condition of women travelling to Dutch clinics worsens constantly since 2020. There are very many people who need an abortion here and now, who are in danger, not just from the cruel law, medical negligence, cowardice of doctors, but also from being in abusive relationships, under constant supervision. Being free from an unwanted pregnancy allows them to be free from abuse in general.  That’s what it was for me, it was a factor in realising how I am being confined, how much I need freedom and the ability to decide for myself. I wanted the same for Anna. I wanted her to be free and control her life and body.  I didn’t want her to risk her life when the solution was so simple and medically safe  I do not want anyone to go alone through a dangerous process of an unsafe abortion when it is possible to do it safely, without stigma. I don’t want any of us to be forced to abandon her right to freedom and self-determination.   I was driven by the will to help when no one else wanted to or could help. For me, helping Ania was an obvious, decent and honest thing to do. It’s good to be honest, even if it doesn’t always pay off. If I knew more about Ania’s situation, I wouldn’t just have sent her the pills. I would have stayed in touch to support her during the abortion, so she wouldn’t feel alone. So she would have someone who would listen, stay with her, hold her hands. We are here to decide on my guilt. I am not guilty and I will say it out loud: the State is guilty, of abandoning Ania, Iza from Pszczyna, Agnieszka from Częstochowa, and millions of women across the country. I ask the court for acquittal.   Originally published by the Abortion Dream Team here.

Justyna ADT
14 March 2023

Poland: IPPF EN is appalled by the guilty verdict in the case of Justyna Wydrzyńska

Today, the District Court in Warsaw found Justyna Wydrzyńska guilty for helping a woman in an abusive relationship to access abortion pills. She was sentenced to eight months of community service for 30 hours/month and will now have a criminal record. "We are deeply saddened by the decision and outraged by the entire process. Condemning a person for an act of empathy and compassion towards another human being is unconceivable. We are in awe of Justyna’s bravery in the face of 18 months of judicial persecution by an apparatus targeting anyone who dares challenge the state’s immoral attacks on healthcare and human rights", said Irene Donadio of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, European Network (IPPF EN).

Poland
13 December 2022

Poland: Women's rights defenders fighting a broken justice

Women’s rights activist Justyna Wydrzyńska faces up to three years in prison after being charged with providing abortion pills to a woman who wanted them – the first case of its kind in Europe. In 2020, Wydrzyńska, a member of Polish activist group Abortion Dream Team, answered a request for abortion pills from a woman whom she said seemed to be in an abusive relationship and had decided not to go through a full pregnancy. But the abortion never took place – the pills were intercepted by the woman’s husband, who called the police. Wydrzyńska was arrested and charged with facilitating an abortion. Today, she hopes her case will shine a light on Poland’s strict abortion laws – and the way the judicial system is being used to persecute rights defenders who protest them. At least six women are reported to have died after being denied an abortion since Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal imposed a near-total ban on abortion care just over two years ago. At the time, the ruling prompted massive demonstrations across the country. The initially peaceful protesters were met with excessive force from authorities, who used tear gas, pepper spray and physical assault to subdue them. These attacks were followed by arrests and charges for those defending women’s rights.  Today, the judicial persecution of rights defenders in Poland continues. Prosecutors with a political agenda have brought spurious charges against activists, and cases have been heard by judges loyal to the ruling Law and Justice party. We at the International Planned Parenthood Federation European Network (IPPF EN) have spoken to several activists in Poland as part of our Defend the Defenders campaign, which highlights their plight, fundraises for psychological support and legal assistance in court cases, and asks the European Union to take action to protect activists. Wydrzyńska is one such activist. Speaking to IPPF EN, she said: “Empathy shouldn’t be punished, especially when someone is asking you for help. I feel there is only one chance to show that the law is extremely harmful. Even if I get a jail sentence, I am ready. I think this battle is bigger than my freedom.” Under Polish law, people who have abortions are not criminalised, but those who directly help them are. The government and ultra-conservative right-wing groups want harsher punishments for abortion rights activists. They also target family members, partners and friends who try to help women access abortion care. Wydrzyńska says Poland’s Ministry of Justice has appointed a right-wing judge to her case, which has been adjourned twice after a witness failed to attend, with the next hearing scheduled for next month. It has been reported that at the trial, the judge will allow Ordo Iuris – a Polish fundamentalist organisation that campaigns against abortion rights and LGBTIQ rights in the country – to stand with the prosecution to represent the rights of the foetus.   Persecuting rights defenders Activist Marta Lempart was charged under Covid laws – along with two other women, Klementyna Suchanow and Agnieszka Czerederecka-Fabin – for taking part in the 2020 anti-abortion protests. Each woman faces eight years in prison. Lempart said her case has already been tried once and dismissed by a judge due to a lack of evidence. Now, the prosecution is trying again. Lempart has 106 charges brought against her, including offences relating to breaking COVID regulations, blocking traffic, hanging posters, and littering in public. Most of these charges are pending due to a stand-off between Poland and the EU. Poland’s funding from the bloc has been frozen for over a year, amid concerns from the bloc over the judicial independence in the country. If the reforms demanded by the EU come to fruition, charges against activists like Lempart are likely to be dropped – but in the meantime, the toll on activists’ mental health and finances is severe. Speaking to the IPPF EN, Lempart said: “We can’t count on courts to be fair for long as the crackdown of the independent judiciary in Poland is happening at the maximum speed. The judges' removals from the cases and replacements, based on political decisions of the ruling party are a daily occurrence. “The government now aims for full power to decide which judge gets which case, taking overhead positions in all possible courts. Legal fees and misdemeanour fines are also hefty – if prosecutors can’t put people in jail, they want to cripple them financially.” To make matters worse, the political atmosphere created and fostered by the ruling Law and Justice party means many people feel it is acceptable to intimidate rights defenders in other ways. Some activists have been sent death threats and bomb threats by neo-nazi groups, and Lempart was assigned police protection after an escalating threat was made against her life. And alongside her numerous charges, Lempart has also had a libel case filed against her by the ultra-conservative organisation, Ordo Iuris.   Glimmers of hope It is not just activists under attack – journalists, politicians, independent judges and ordinary citizens in Poland also suffer from politicised assaults. In one case, lawmaker Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus faces two charges for participating in a 2020 protest, in which she held up a banner supporting abortion in a church. The prosecutor’s office in the city of Toruń charged Scheuring-Wielgus with ‘offending religious feelings’ and ‘malicious interference with religious worship’, according to Human Rights Watch. The hearing will take place in January, with each offence – for which she has pleaded not guilty – carrying a penalty of up to two years in prison. In another worrying development, Polish freedom fighters seem to have lost an ally due to recent changes in the Ombudsman’s Office, the supposedly neutral body appointed to investigate complaints made against public officials. The ombudsman, Marcin Wiącek, has dismissed his deputy, Hanna Machińska, who was known for protecting the rights of refugees on the Polish-Belarusian border and for intervening on behalf of protesters detained during pro-abortion and pro-LGBTIQ rights’ protests. Machińska will be replaced with Wojciech Brzozowski, a specialist in religious law. Meanwhile, the EU waits for Poland to meet the milestones its commission set for releasing the Cohesion and Covid Recovery Funds, now frozen due to severe breaches of the rule of law and fundamental rights. But MEPs have expressed concern that the commission’s criteria was not enough – and urged the EU council not to release the funds until Poland has fully complied with EU law. Lempart agrees, believing the EU’s approach emboldens the Law and Justice party. She explained: “The milestones are not in compliance with the EU Court of Justice rulings, so the EU is breaking its own laws. “It sends a clear message that they don’t care about the rule of law in Poland, and there is now an attempt to fast-track cases against protesters before these new changes are implemented.” We must ask ourselves – is this the Europe we want to live in, where rights are negotiable, where women are forced through pregnancy, and rights defenders are dragged to court by fundamentalist governments?  But hope remains, and with Polish parliamentary elections coming up next year, people have a chance to push for positive change. Support for liberalising abortion laws has risen from 37% in 2016 to 70% in 2022, while support for same-sex marriage has risen from 18% to 52% over the same time period.  “Moderate conservatism has been hijacked but the Law and Justice party is destroying itself,” said Lempart. “People saw the violence we faced. There has been a huge wave of support from people who don’t want to be part of the anti-women and anti-LGBT+ campaigns. They are too dogmatic, there must be a middle ground. People are moving more towards love and not hate.”   Originally published in Open Democracy. Credit photo: Spacerowiczka

Justyna
07 December 2022

Justyna: ‘I may be sitting alone but I am not alone’

‘They want to leave women alone with their ‘problem,’ says Polish women’s rights defender, Justyna of the ruling ultra-conservative party in Poland.  Justyna, a mother of three, works in an increasingly hostile environment, one in which women’s sexual and reproductive rights (SRHR) are being completely dismantled. Poland has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe, only permitting abortion when the life or health of the pregnant woman is endangered or in the case of rape or incest. On 22 October 2020, the Polish Court went further and ruled that abortions could no longer happen in cases of foetal illness or abnormality. The only way for women who need a safe abortion is to rely on NGOs and women’s rights defenders, like Justyna, who enable self-administrated abortions; a safe and easy way avoid being forced through a pregnancy.

Polish Women's Strike

PWS is a grassroots, independent social movement committed to create Poland for everyone - where rights of women, LGBT+ persons, persons with disabilities, seniors, people with lower income, people of ethnic minorities are respected and secured, with the priority for the right to abortion and other reproductive rights, as a founding issue of their movement.

Contact: Twitter, Instagram.

FEDERA

FEDERA Foundation for Women and Family Planning (formerly the Federation) is a non-governmental organization operating since 1991, fighting for reproductive justice.

FEDERA's mission is advocating for basic human rights, especially the right of women to decide freely whether and when to have children. In FEDERA’s opinion, the possibility to enjoy this right is for women a condition of self-determination, as well as the condition of equalizing the life opportunities of women and men. They are fulfilling our mission through:

  • Providing assistance to women in access to legal abortion in Polish hospitals and providing information on access to abortion care abroad and medical abortion,
  • Intervening in cases of women being refused access to medical services in the field of reproductive health,
  • Providing expert advice via helplines in individual queries addressed by persons in need of access to SRH services,
  • Initiating and supporting activities focusing on women’s right to conscious motherhood,
  • Monitoring the state of reproductive rights,
  • Preparing reports on women’s health and reproductive rights,
  • Promoting knowledge about reproductive health,
  • Advocating for the access to adequate quality of reproductive and sexual health services,
  • Advocating for the liberalization and decriminalization of access to abortion,
  • Promoting knowledge about international mechanisms of human rights protection,
  • Applying to international human rights institutions with the aim of improving the state of human rights observance in Poland, including the right to health,
  • Media campaigns.

Contact: Facebook, Instagram.

defend the defenders
25 October 2022

Polish prosecutors indict women’s human rights defenders and plan to go ahead with another sham trial

Three leading women’s rights defenders are facing eight years in prison in Poland for exercising their right to peaceful protest.  Prosecutors in Warsaw filed the indictment against Marta Lempart, Klementyna Suchanow and Agnieszka Czerederecka-Fabin of the Polish Women’s Strike (Ogólnopolski Strajk Kobiet, OSK), a partner of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, European Network, for allegedly organizing protests during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Massive protests were prompted back in October 2020 by the decision of the illegally appointed Constitutional Tribunal to impose a near-total ban on abortion care. Peaceful protesters were met with excessive force, with authorities using tear gas, pepper spray and physical assault. Now, two years on, women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are still being attacked by Polish authorities, with defenders facing violence from law enforcement and far-right groups, including bomb threats, as well as smear campaigns in state-controlled media, detention and excessive criminal charges orchestrated and encouraged by the government. In the case of the Polish Women’s Strike’s members, these charges include “causing an epidemiological threat”, endangering public health and publicly praising crimes.  The new indictment against the women’s rights defenders came just days before the second anniversary of the near-total ban on abortion, which has killed six women so far. It also comes in the same month that a court hearing was held in the trial of Justyna Wydrzyńska.  Justyna, a member of Abortion Without Borders and the Abortion Dream Team, is facing up to three years in prison for facilitating an abortion that didn’t happen. Her case marks the first in Europe where a WHRD is being prosecuted for helping ensure abortion care by providing abortion pills. Justyna’s trial is ongoing. Irene Donadio of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, European Network, said:

ADT - Justyna Wydrzyńska.jpg
14 July 2022

Poland: Trial drags on of rights defender accused of helping abuse survivor to access abortion

As today’s hearing in the trial of human rights defender Justyna Wydrzyńska is postponed until October 14, we ask Poland’s Justice Ministry to immediately drop the charges against Justyna and stop oppressing woman rights defenders (WRDs). Justyna is charged with supporting Ania, a woman in an abusive relationship, to access abortion pills. A survivor herself of a similar situation to Ania, she took compassionate action to help the woman. Justyna’s efforts were reported to the police by the controlling husband. Ania was denied abortion care, but the stress caused her to miscarry. Now, Justyna, a member of Abortion Without Borders and the Abortion Dream Team, is facing up to three years in prison for facilitating an abortion that didn’t happen. Her case marks the first in Europe in which a WRD is being prosecuted for helping ensure abortion care by providing abortion pills.

Ukraine solidarity
04 July 2022

The French Government commits 60.000 euros to help Ukrainian refugees access abortion care

We wholeheartedly welcome the decision of the French government to support the reproductive safety and freedom of Ukrainian refugees in Poland by financing Abortion Without Borders via IPPF EN. Abortion Without Borders is a civil society initiative working in countries with restrictive laws to help people access abortion care at home with pills or abroad in clinics. The French financial support will specifically be used for the management of help lines and to assist Ukrainian women in Poland travel abroad to receive the care they so desperately need. Concretely, it is expected that the 60.000 euros will help at least 150 women to received safe and legal abortion care outside Poland. Currently, Poland has one of Europe’s most restrictive abortion laws. In practice, it is almost impossible for those eligible for a legal abortion to obtain one. The barriers that have long faced Polish women now also affect Ukrainian refugees. We know that access to emergency contraception and safe abortion care is even more important following the increased threat and terrifying reported incidence of abuse, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and trafficking facing refugees and displaced people. Timing is also of the essence when treating victims of sexual violence and delays can prove dangerous for their physical and mental health. Civil society organizations and ordinary citizens are the ones providing this care to refugees, but this is not properly reflected in many funding schemes. This heroic effort is not sustainable. Without support, these solidarity networks will collapse, with devastating consequences for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.