Fellow protester Magdalena, who is also 33, said: “This government has polarised Poland like never before, but at least people are waking up.”

For the second time in two years, the ruling national conservative government is moving to tighten laws that allow abortions here only in cases of incest, rape and nonviable foetuses, or when the mother’s life is threatened. Poland has one of the strictest abortion laws in Europe, allowing abortion only if the woman's life or health is at risk, the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest, or the fetus is damaged. An attempt by Polish officials to ban all abortions in 2016 sparked mass nationwide protests by women dressed in black that forced the government to abandon the plan. The new draft Bill, the petition warns, “will place women’s health and lives at risk and violate Poland’s international human rights obligations”. Poland’s women’s organizations have called protests Friday in front of parliament, the ruling party’s headquarters and the seat of Roman Catholic bishops, who are urging adoption of the law. The European Union's Commissioner for Human Rights, Nils Muiznieks, and U.N. experts are urging Poland's parliament to reject the abortion bill, saying it puts Poland in conflict with its international human rights obligations.
Thousands protest across Poland against the government's proposed restrictions on abortion.