France inscribed the guaranteed right to abortion in its constitution Friday, a powerful message of support for women’s rights on International Women’s Day.
Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti used a 19th-century printing press to seal the amendment in France’s constitution at a special public ceremony. Applause filled the cobblestoned Place Vendome as France became the first country to explicitly guarantee abortion rights in its national charter.
The measure was overwhelmingly approved by French lawmakers earlier this week, and Friday’s ceremony means it can now enter into force.
While abortion is a deeply divisive issue in the US, it's legal in nearly all of Europe and overwhelmingly supported in France, where it’s seen more as a question of public health than politics. French legislators approved the constitutional amendment on Monday in a 780-72 vote that was backed by many far-right lawmakers.
Friday’s ceremony in Paris was a key event on a day focused on advancing women’s rights globally. Marches, protests and conferences are being held from Jakarta, Indonesia, to Mexico City and beyond.
The French constitutional amendment has been hailed by women’s rights advocates around the world, including places where women struggle to access birth control or maternal health care. French President Emmanuel Macron called it a direct result of the US Supreme Court ruling in 2022 rescinding long-held abortion rights.
Macron wants to make abortion a right at EU level
Speaking at the ceremony in Paris Friday, Macron said he wants the European Union to guarantee the right to an abortion in its Charter of Fundamental Rights.
"Today is not the end of the story but the start of a fight," said Macron. "We're going to lead this fight in our continent, in our Europe, where reactionary forces are attacking women's rights before attacking the rights of minorities," he added.
"This is why I want to enshrine that guaranteed freedom to abortion in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union," said Macron.
Changing the EU charter, which would require unanimity, may prove difficult. While most of Europe has legalised abortion, some countries impose restrictions on women seeking to terminate a pregnancy, and deep divisions over abortion rights remain.
Last year, the government of EU member Malta backed down on a bill which would have allowed the abortion of pregnancies when the mother's health was at serious risk, saying instead that terminations would only be allowed when the mother's life was in danger.
Along with Malta, Poland's anti-abortion laws are among the most restrictive in Europe. Pregnancy can be terminated only in cases of a threat to the mother's life or health or in a case of rape, and the number of abortions fell to 161 in 2022 from over 1,000 in 2020.
'It’s a smokescreen'
In France, Macron’s critics questioned why he pursued the measure in a country with no obvious threat to abortion rights but where women face a multitude of other problems.
While some French women saw the step as a major win, others said that in reality not every French woman has access to abortion.
“It’s a smokescreen,” Arya Meroni, 32, said of the event.
“The government is destroying our health care system, many family planning clinics have closed,’’ she said at an annual “Feminist Night March” in Paris on the eve of International Women’s Day.
France has a persistently high rate of women killed by their partners and challenges remain in prosecuting sexual abuse against women by powerful celebrities and other men. French women also see lower pay and pensions – especially women who are not white.
Macron's government said the abortion amendment was important to avoid a US-like scenario for women in France, as hard-right groups are gaining ground and seeking to turn back the clock on freedoms around Europe.
The French government has said that it is now going to try to ensure better safeguards under EU law.
"France must now take this fight to the European level," said its spokeswoman Prisca Thevenot on Wednesday.
"In 2022, the president said he wanted to add the right to abortion in the European Union's charter of fundamental rights," she added.
No country until now had so far as clearly safeguarded the right to a pregnancy termination in its basic text, according to Leah Hoctor, of the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Some countries allude to the right, while others explicitly mention abortion, but only in certain circumstances.
'Example for progressives'
Neil Datta, of the European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual and Reproductive Rights, said the French move sent a strong signal.
It "could give momentum to improving abortion legislation, just as the reversal of Roe v. Wade in the United States gave some to anti-abortion groups worldwide", he said.
France "could serve as an example for progressives in all countries of Europe and beyond to define a course", he said.
Even without amending the constitution, "they could... improve their legislation".
National Assembly speaker Yael Braun-Pivet – the first woman in the post – was the one to read out the result of Monday's historic vote, with 780 lawmakers in favour and 72 voting against.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
