In an interview with ANF, Martyna Katarzyna talked about the ongoing situation in Poland about ‘Abortion law and Women’s rights’- Katarzyna is an activist and journalist who lives in Warsaw and actively observes current situation

What is the current situation in Poland regarding Women’s rights?

Since the PiS party came to power, women's rights in Poland have been threatened. The major issue is connected to the abortion law. Poland is one of the countries with the strictest abortion law, where the termination of pregnancy is legally allowed only in cases of rape or incest, lethal malformations of the fetus, or if the pregnancy endangers a woman's health or life.

The ruling party has been attempting to restrict the law even more since 2016. Another example of the government taking a swing at women's rights is the withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention.

As you know ‘Istanbul Convention’ is a treaty that preventing violence against women and domestic violence. However, the Polish government has announced they would like to leave the convention. What are the benefits of this convention in Poland and what do you think would happen if Poland leaves the ‘Istanbul Convention’?

The Istanbul Convention has been ratified in Poland in 2015, which is ONLY 5 years ago! The treaty significantly changes and expands certain important definitions. For example, Polish law classifies rape as a violent sexual act performed with the use of force or deception, and does not include lack of victim's consent, which the Istanbul Convention does.

Importantly, Polish neutral anti-domestic violence regulations don't take into consideration violence against women in particular. According to the Ordo Iuris foundation, the Istanbul Convention focuses too much on the violence against women itself, instead of emphasizing different sources of violence, e.g. addiction. In short, the Istanbul Convention fills any gaps in the already existing Polish law regarding domestic violence and facilitates its prevention.

Poland's withdrawal from the treaty means a huge step backwards - it puts women in danger and leaves a lot of room for interpretation and irregularities in many areas and aspects of domestic violence. I think it is absolutely horrendous that the current government wants to withdraw from the treaty which aims to protect its citizens!

Abortion law has caused massive demonstrations and protests in Poland.  As we know ‘abortion law’ is a threat to both freedom of women and their bodies.  It also means the government would like to decide about your own decision to make about your own body and right. What do you think about this?

Like many women in Poland and around the world I think it is outrageous that the ruling party, knowing full well that the majority of the society is against restricting the abortion laws, still attacked our bodily autonomy. What’s even more upsetting is the fact, that they did it in the middle of a global pandemic, knowing that the Constitutional Court’s decision will make people go out and protest in the streets.

I believe a woman, in any circumstances, should have access to safe abortion – she should have the right to make a choice for herself. No one, and especially no man, has the right to tell her what to do with her body. A lot of pro-lifers have a misconception about abortion leading down the paths of eugenics, but that is not true. It is much simpler than that: women want to decide about what to do with their own life, if they don’t want to become a mother, they should be able to make that life choice, even if they have to turn to their last resort – abortion. It is a basic human right.

Lastly, what is the aim of the government about all these? What do they want to do?

It is hard for me to say, but from what I have been observing since the beginning of PiS’ rise to power is that women’s (and LGBTQ+) rights have been in constant jeopardy. If we consider the abortion ban in connection with the 500+ welfare program (which aims to encourage people to have offspring by offering a monthly payment for each child) and the conservative narrative in general, we can come to the conclusion that increasing population in Poland constitutes a major objective for the government.

The problem is the execution – both women and men do not want to have children in an authoritarian country.The threat of women’s rights being not only violated but completely erased is a rational fear of many people in Poland. Another important fact is that the Polish government has not been successful in battling or even controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, we are in a crisis – we lack medical personnel and equipment, and we have thousands of cases each day.

Coming back to my previous point – PiS knew very well that any sudden decision regarding abortion ban would make the citizens protest and go out in the streets. Now, they are asking people to remember about coronavirus and go back home, as they pose a threat to the public health. There is talk about announcing the state of emergency and persecute those who participate and organize the protests (there have already been attempted arrests on the organizers). PiS’ narrative clearly blames the protesters for the critical situation in Poland.

It is also important to remember that there are certain organizations of questionable values in Poland, such as ONR (eng. National Radical Camp), which openly attack the protesting women during the marches, and that those groups are openly endorsed by PiS. In his most recent proclamation, Jarosław Kaczyński openly asked his supporters to “defend the churches” and basically declared war against women. It is unacceptable for one of the most important (rightfully or not) people in the government to shamelessly call for a civil war!

Kaczyński’s speech directly entails the extreme polarization of the Polish society and worsens it. PiS has never done anything to build bridges between the right-wing and the left in Poland. With their horrendous discriminative narrative and ruthless actions they only contribute to the constant expansion of the gap between their supporters, and those who want to live in a progressive country, where everyone is welcome and accepted for who they are.