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Poland’s right-wing government has delayed the publication and implementation of a higher court ruling toughening abortion law and sparked nearly two weeks of protests across the country.
A government official said Tuesday that leaders were taking time to debate the contested ruling and find a solution.
“There is an ongoing discussion and it would be good to take some time to dialogue and find a new position in this difficult situation and arouses great emotions,” said Michał Dworczyk, head of the prime minister’s office.
The constitutional court ruled last month that aborting fetuses with birth defects violated the constitution, further toughening what was already one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe.
It would mean that the only abortions allowed by Polish law would be in cases of risk to the woman’s life or of a crime, that is, rape or incest.
The ruling was scheduled to be formally published on Monday. Unpublished, it has no legal power.
Since the ruling, hundreds of thousands of people have held massive daily protests against the government. The protesters, mostly young, have ignored the threat of the pandemic and the ban on public gatherings of more than five people aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus.
Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has called for talks with protesters and opposition lawmakers to find a solution.
With Poland shaken by attempts to further restrict abortion, polls show a large drop in support for the ruling conservative Law and Justice party and its leader, Deputy Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński.
The president, Andrzej Duda, who is aligned with the government, proposed a new law that would allow the abortion of fetuses with life-threatening defects, but would ban it for disorders like Down syndrome. However, this idea is still considered too restrictive for many people and it does not seem likely that it will get enough support in parliament.
Women’s rights activists are critical of Duda’s proposal and Morawiecki’s invitation to talks, and are planning more protests this week.
Constitutional law experts say delaying the publication of the ruling would violate a legal provision that states that the rulings of the constitutional courts will be published “without delay.”
“This is by far the worst option,” said Marcin Matczak, a law professor at the University of Warsaw. “It all comes down to this approach that if someone doesn’t like a constitutional court ruling, they can’t publish it.”
The rulings are published by the government in the Journal of Laws.
Shortly after Law and Justice gained power in 2015 and took steps to control the constitutional court, the government delayed the publication of some of the court’s rulings for up to two years and only bowed when pressured by other European Union leaders.
