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Thousands of human rights activists and women’s rights campaigners in Poland gathered outside the country’s parliament in Warsaw on September 18, to protest against new draft legislation aimed to criminalise nearly all abortions. Demonstrations were also held in several other Polish cities, including one outside the Polish embassy in London.

As reported The Guardian, the new measure was drawn up with the backing of the Catholic Church. If passed, abortions would be outlawed except where necessary to save a women’s life. Also women seeking abortions and doctors carrying them out would be subject to jail sentences of up to five years for causing “the death of a conceived child”.

Legislators are expected to start debating the controversial bill on September 21.

Gathering under the slogan “Save women, not a step further”, opponents argued that the change would risk the lives of women and force girls as young as 11 who had been raped or subjected to incest either to give birth or face going to jail.

According to The Guardian, official health ministry data show that fewer than 1,000 legal abortions are carried out in Poland each year. But independent groups have estimated that between 80,000 and 190,000 Polish women undergo terminations annually, either in “backstreet” procedures or by travelling abroad.

“The existing law is one of the most restrictive in Europe,” Krystyna Kacpuro, director of the Federation of Women and Family Planning, said. “Getting access to their legal abortion rights is already a hard road for many women. For example, in Podkarpackie region in southern Poland, all the hospitals and doctors have signed a conscientious objection letter refusing to carry them out.

“So effectively we already have no legal abortions in Poland. But at least women are not yet criminalised. And if there is a real threat to a pregnant woman’s life, the doctor will save her.”

Mariusz Dzierżawski, the head of Poland’s Stop Abortion committee, said 58% of Poles backed the proposed new law, adding that it was necessary because “about 1,000 unborn children are legally killed in Poland each year”.

He said: “Being suspected of having Down’s syndrome is enough to be killed. It must change. We do not fear abortion supporters as they are weak and there are few of them. The pro-life movement is much stronger in our country. We will force the politicians to ban killing people.”

In a separate report, Motto online noted that Poland’s existing abortion laws have been challenged in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The court found that in three cases, including in the case of a 14 year-old rape victim, unacceptable obstacles to women’s and girls’ access to safe and legal abortion breached Poland’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights.

If parliament passes the new bill, Motto noted it would result in a breach of international human rights treaties and conventions.