With reproductive rights being challenged around the world, not only in Poland, but also in the United States, where Texas lawmakers are pushing for restrictive abortion laws, what future holds for the Ciocia Czesia project and could an increase in conservative lawmakers threaten voting rights in the Czech Republic? The whole issue of artificial abortion in the Czech Republic is regulated by Act ČNR 66/1986 Coll. and Ministry of Health Regulation 75/1986 Coll. Basically, it says that, according to a woman`s wishes, pregnancy can be terminated until the end of the 12th week of pregnancy from the first day of the last menstrual period. The abortion must be requested in a special form in which the woman confirms by her signature that she is requesting the abortion and her attending gynaecologist records her findings as well as the conclusion that the pregnancy can be terminated. In fact, the only reason that prevents is the reality that the person experienced the interruption less than 6 months ago. This requirement is established by law and does not apply to women with at least two births or over 35 years of age. If the applicant is not principal, the law distinguishes two groups: up to the age of 16, the consent of the parents or their legal guardian is required, after the age of 16, the consent of the parents or their legal guardian is required. At the woman`s age, the woman has the right to decide for herself on her pregnancy and the consent of her parents is not required, but the medical clinic should also announce the implementation of the procedure to the parents. «I really don`t know how to comment on this, I think it`s either a joke or cynicism. People want free abortion, or at least not tightening abortion rights,» Nowaczyk said. «Our collective does not support this compromise.

We cannot even call it a compromise. At the regional level, the highest abortion rate is recorded in northern and north-western Bohemia due to population structure (in 2002, 31.3 per cent of abortions were initiated in the Tachov district). The lowest rates are recorded in the rural districts of South Moravia and the highlands of Bohemia and Moravia (in 2002, 15.5 per cent of abortions were initiated in the district of Žďár nad Sázavou). [5] [6] Abortion rates in large industrial cities are generally higher than in small towns and rural areas. In 2019, foreigners accounted for 5.3% of the total number of abortions (1,699 cases of abortions for foreigners). Nowaczyk learned during Ciocia Czesia`s first year that many Czech hospitals and clinics still refuse to perform abortions for Polish women. Since the beginning of the initiative in November 2020, the Ciocia Czesia collective has been conducting a fundraising campaign for women who cannot afford abortions abroad. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the conflict should be resolved through dialogue rather than mass street rallies, while the country`s president, Andrzej Duda, introduced a «compromise» bill that would allow abortions for fatal fetal malformations, but not for Down syndrome. History and statistics Abortion for reasons other than health was legalized in the Czech Republic in 1957.

For most of the communist era, however, women had to seek approval from a special committee (which granted permission in almost all cases). In 1986, the abortion law was liberalized and abortion commissions abolished. In the years leading up to the 1989 revolution, abortion rates were enormous, largely due to the communist government`s taboo approach to sexual and family planning and the public`s lack of knowledge about contraception. In 1989, 9 out of 10 fetuses had an abortion; In the 1980s, an average of 116,000 abortions were performed per year. The largest Czech opposition party, the Pirates, supports Ciocia Czesia and has called on the government to abort Polish women in Czech clinics. «They want to push the government to.. Updating the law. to be absolutely sure that no one has any doubts. that it`s completely legal,» Nowaczyk said. The abortion pill has been legal in the Czech Republic since 2014.

For many women, it`s a less invasive way to cause miscarriage, even though recording the pill has been rejected by anti-choice groups. Abortion is not covered by health insurance unless the mother`s life is in danger. Women up to the age of 18 must obtain signed permission from a parent or guardian. Sixteen people, including Nowaczyk, and about 70 volunteers join forces to form a newly formed collective called Ciocia Czesia (Aunt Czech Republic), which aims to help Polish women in various ways – by sharing necessary information, arranging transportation and accommodation, and providing them with financial and emotional support – in exercising their right to abortion, which threatens to be taken away from them. «Some, including the Department of Health, are concerned that once the law is opened, conservative groups could take advantage of the momentum to change the part of the law that guarantees fairly liberal/broad access to abortion.» In order to assure clinics and doctors that the practice of abortions on EU foreigners is legal, JUDr. Barbora Vráblová helped the collective Ciocia Czesia interpret the grey area of the law on abortion of foreigners in the Czech Republic. Abortion is legal in the Czech Republic during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. According to the European Atlas of Abortion Policies, 2021, legal frameworks for access to abortion vary considerably across European countries. Abortion remains technically a crime in 14 of the 52 European countries. The European Parliament held a hearing in March 2021 on the issue of foreign interference in the funding of anti-abortion/anti-choice organisations in the EU that undermine women`s sexual and reproductive health and rights. «We financially supported 26 abortions, which is equivalent to 230,000 Czech crowns,» says Nowaczyk. The group also raised funds in its first year through a successful t-shirt sales campaign.

«We are not here [in Poland], but we can help from abroad because abortion is completely legal in the Czech Republic until the 12th week of pregnancy – you can do it without giving reasons,» the 28-year-old artist told BIRN, adding that abortion for medical reasons is allowed until the 24th week of pregnancy and in case of problems with a malformed fetus at any time during pregnancy. On-demand abortion has been illegal in Poland since the mid-1990s. Doctors can also invoke their freedom of conscience to refuse abortion, even in cases where it is legal. Covid-related travel restrictions and the rapid closure of borders across Europe have also posed additional challenges to the collective`s efforts in its first year of existence, as well as to Polish women seeking access to abortion in the Czech Republic and other countries. «Women who are over 10 weeks need surgical abortions, which they can get in the Czech Republic or other European countries,» she adds. In addition to advice and support on the practical aspects of the abortion process, the group also connects Poland with psychological support groups. After Poland`s intransigent decision on abortion, a debate erupted in the Czech Republic over the legality of performing abortions on foreigners who only come here to undergo the procedure. The Constitutional Court`s October 22 ruling means that abortions are only allowed in cases of rape, incest or when the mother`s health is seriously threatened – but these are rare. The decision by the country`s highest court, whose staff is illegally staffed by supporters of the ruling conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, has led to widespread protests in Poland and abroad, despite strict measures to combat the pandemic. Since 1993, abortions for non-medical reasons have not been paid for by the public health system.