Reproductive Rights in Poland

"Agata is too interested in her own ass instead of being interested in something else"

Doctor who refused treatment for Agata Lamczak's colitis ulcerous in order to preserve Lamczak's pregnancy. The lack of treatment ultimately led to Lamczak's death (Z v. Poland, 2008)

My first introduction to the world of reproductive rights activism occurred during the 2006 election season. South Dakota had proposed a bill intended to overturn Roe v. Wade by banning abortion in all cases. The bill that year was narrowly defeated, minimally preserving the right to choose by only a five percent margin.

Two years later, during President Obama's first presidential bid, the bill was reintroduced. This time, the anti-choice bill allowed for abortions only in the cases of rape and/or incest. The resulting campaign, which ended in another 55% to 45% victory, propelled me into the major of Women's Studies. Through our work at the South Dakota Campaign for Healthy Families, I was exposed to the realities of power and privilege. I saw how personal politics were tipped in a way in which society could blame victims. My abhorrence for abstinence-only education and other anti-choice methods grew substantially.

After these week, however, South Dakota's four year struggle seemed like child's pay in comparison to the folks fighting for reproductive rights in Poland. First, the law in Poland reads very similar to that second proposal in South Dakota. This Polish law states that abortion is only allowed when the life or health of the woman is endanger, when there is a "high probability of "a severe and irreversible fetal impairment", or when the pregnancy is the result of a crime, though the third option is only permitted during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy (1993 Family Planning Act). This act is paired with Poland's criminal code, which implies that any one who assists in providing abortion to a woman faces up to three years in prison. This "assistance" includes giving advice to a woman that then leads to an abortion, or even giving a woman a ride to a clinic in which she will obtain an abortion. Additionally, there is an act, The Profession of a Physician Act, allows doctors to "object to performing abortions based on their conscience."

"Number of Legal Abortions in Poland" from FEDERA
View FEDERA's full 2008 report on Poland 

While there are many parts of the above three acts that seem to echo laws in various states throughout the United States, the implications in Poland do not stop at the act of abortion. In Poland, it is illegal for any woman under the age of 18 to even see a gynecologist in order to seek contraceptives without her parent or guardian physically at the doctor. Additionally, students in Polish schools are often forced to watch the medically inaccurate "Silent Scream" during classes. These Polish schools are also the ones in which religion is taught through tax payers' money.

The social realms held the most stark differences between the Polish fight for reproductive rights and the American one in which I had been trained. One lecture we attended stated that 95% of the country is identified as Catholic, with 75% practicing their religion regularly. That same lecture also noted that, in rural areas, 30% of women thought it was a wife's duty to provide sex on demand. Not to mention, the church is a little more than involved with their government...

Polish bishops to parliament re in vitro. For those (like me) who did not know,
"naprotechnology" is natural procreation technology.

Of all the lectures we have encountered in Poland, our talk on reproductive rights was by far the most interesting. The very political realm that was the catalyst for my work in Women's Studies was now turned on its head in a cross-cultural context. It simultaneously made me grateful for the progress we have made for women in America, but also hungry to do more activism. I still have yet to figure out what that activism looks like and whether it will be played out on a local, national, or international scale.