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Hospitals in Poland have been turning away women seeking abortions even though a court ruling that has instituted a near-total ban on interruptions has yet to go into effect.
The ban, which outlaws one of the three narrow exceptions under which abortion is still allowed, that of severe fetal defects, has sparked huge protests in Poland.
However, the hospitals appear to already be in line with what activists describe as a “cruel and inhuman” trial.
The constitutional court’s ruling on October 22 came after lawmakers from the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party lobbied for it to be revised.
Since last week, the Federation for Women and Family Planning has received dozens of calls from distressed women, including those who did not show up for clinics despite having pre-existing appointments due to fetal abnormalities.
“Most are too distraught to even talk to me,” said the group’s executive director, Krystyna Kacpura. “They start talking and burst into tears. These women need psychological help, their mental health is in very bad condition ”.
The federation appealed to the mayor of Warsaw to urge hospitals to reverse their policies and subsequently some, including Bielański Hospital and Orłowskiego Hospital in Warsaw, took a 180 degree turn.
A woman from Wroclaw, in southwestern Poland, who is 16 weeks pregnant, was rejected at a local clinic despite a reservation and documents confirming that the fetus had serious malformations.
“They told him there were no beds available and that he would be back in two weeks,” Kacpura said. “But we know that this access will not be possible soon, and she is already pregnant.”
She tried to defend the distraught caller, but said the doctor refused to help. “He said that there are many cases where women change their minds. The attitude towards women of some gynecologists in this country is appalling, ”Kacpura said.
Kamila Ferenc, a human rights lawyer who has been representing some of the women, said: “They are terrified, they are afraid of the future, they feel humiliated and they are so depressed that the doctors and hospitals they trust let them down.”
The situation is exacerbated by the increase in Covid-19 cases in Poland. The country of 38 million people reported a record 21,629 new infections on Friday, the Health Ministry said, and some abortion clinics were already closed due to the pandemic.
Given that 97% of the 1,110 legal abortions in Poland last year were performed for serious fetal defects, the court ruling means an almost total ban. The other exemptions are if the mother’s life is in danger or in cases of rape or incest.
Many women seeking abortions travel abroad to foreign clinics or seek clandestine providers within Poland. Aborto Sin Fronteras said that since last week’s ruling it has supported 21 Polish women to get an abortion outside the country.
“We do not believe there are good or bad reasons to have an abortion, but we do know that a desired pregnancy diagnosed with a serious abnormality is devastating,” said Mara Clarke of the organization. “This court believes it is better to force women to continue pregnancies that may not be viable … give birth to sick babies and watch them die.”
In 2016 Jarosław Kaczyński, the PiS leader, said: “We will strive to ensure that even in pregnancies that are very difficult, when it is certain that a child is going to die, heavily deformed, women end up giving birth so that the child can be baptized, buried and have a name “.
