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On Thursday, a Polish constitutional court ruled that abortion is prohibited even if the fetus is shown to be seriously injured. In practice, this means a total ban on abortion in the country that has one of the strictest abortion laws in Europe.
Since 1993, abortion has been prohibited in the country, with the exception of pregnancies resulting from rape, incest or if the pregnancy represents a danger to the mother’s health. Until now, there has also been an exception in cases where the fetus has serious injuries, but now there is also a stop for these abortions.
After the court ruling, thousands of Poles took to the streets to protest. Former cross country star Justyna Kowalczyk also showed her discontent in a television interview with Sport.pl.
– How can a woman be sentenced to give birth to a child who will die immediately after birth? How can a family be condemned to keep a being alive when doctors give no hope that it will turn into anything other than a vegetable? says Kowalczyk in the interview.
Kowalczyk responds: – Unfair
Spontaneously aborted
In 2014, the Polish cross country queen admitted that she had struggled with depression. The reason for this was that the previous year she lost a child after a miscarriage. Therefore, the ongoing fight against abortion means more to Kowalczyk.
– Our country practically leaves parents alone in such a situation. How can they find time and money for medicine and care 24 hours a day? Where should they get the strength for this? Kowalczyk asks, continuing:
– We only fight for the right to choose, he says in the interview with sport.pl.
The heat
The interview subsequently generated many reactions in Poland, and now Kowalczyk has spoken out against the incitement he has received on social media.
One comment in particular made the cup overflow for the Polish queen of the cross country. It said, among other things:
I’m ashamed of you, you selfish. Do you think that when you eliminate a living divine being, everyone should do it?
This caused the double Olympic champion to react.
– Enough of lies and gossip. If I do not receive an official apology, tomorrow I will report this disgusting fraudulent person to the prosecution, Kowalczyk wrote in a Facebook post that has been reproduced in the Polish media.
Mysterious disease: – I thought: Now the season is coming to an end
– terrible
Although Poland has had exceptions that have been opened for certain abortions, all health professionals have had the opportunity to refuse to perform an abortion if it is contrary to their own beliefs. In the strictly Catholic country, therefore, it is very common for doctors not to perform the procedure.
Kowalczyk believes that it is strange that the strict law is coming as most Poles are Catholic and should not need stricter rules to live up to their own convictions.
– In a country where 90 percent of the population is Catholic, we do not need to introduce such a ban. Current science means that the fetus can be examined much earlier during pregnancy. Why not apply the knowledge used by the entire civilized world? It is terrible that we go back in time, Kowalczyk enraged in the interview with sport.pl.
The four-time Tour de Ski winner resigned after the Sochi Olympics in 2018. After leaving her cross-country skis on the shelf, the 37-year-old has played a role in the support apparatus of the national ski team of polish background.
