The Influence of Feminism on Abortion Policy in Poland.

The influence of feminism on abortion policy in Poland. By Anna Lysakowska Karsten The last decade of the XXth century has marked major achievements regarding the recognition of women’s rights as human rights in the international scene. (Nowicka, 2011) The most important, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the International Conference on Population & Development in Cairo in 1994, allowed women and girls to control their own lives and bodies what showed the social customs that violate women’s rights and identified them as elements that help to perpetuate inequality. (Yoshihara, 2010) The major force behind these changes was a feminist movement trying to liberalize political systems in order to see the transformation of them to a less discriminative. (Lawson, 2007) Entering the new century many of us hoped that soon all the world countries would extend the decriminalization of abortion. Although it did happen in various countries Poland, together with Malta, when entering the European Union in 2004 became a part of ‘unholy’ alliance as the only countries in Europe prohibiting abortion. (Nowicka, 2011) In this paper I will therefore try to answer the question if, and how, feminism in Poland influences the public policy of abortion and what has been the error of Polish feminism that abortion still remains illegal. To answer mentioned above questions it is necessary to know the historical context of Polish politics. Till 1989 Poland was a pro-Communistic. However, a socialist regime in Poland gave women freedom and equality to men. The state wanted women to work. Images of working women, as the most famous fictional character played by Irena Kwiatkowska – working women, were present in media and society, so women did not see the need to fight for more rights by becoming feminists, (Jankowska, 1991) especially when independent political parties or groups were banned. However, feminist without an official name existed and actually also showed in men figures. Tadeusz Boy-Zelenski, a famous writer, was one of the strongest advocates for the equality of women and abortion rights and thanks to him the Polish Penal Code was liberalized in 1956. (Jankowska, 1993) Abortion became legal, 1956 till the 12th week of pregnancy, since. Women enjoyed their reproductive rights as much that termination of pregnancy became a popular method of birth control, nobody was asking women about their reasons to do it. (Chelstowska, 2011) Abortion was available in public hospitals for free or in private clinics for an affordable price, so more than 50% of women had more than one abortion. (Girard & Nowicka, 2002) When in 1980 Solidarnosc (Polish Trade Union / Solidarity), came to power as the opposition of communist regime, women were allowed to have their own section in the Party created by Lech Kaczynski. However, the idea of Solidarnosc was not to create a feminist group, but one to mediate between the Party and media. Nevertheless, women involved in this section quickly became feminists and voted in favor of abortion. Although after this incident they were prevented from representing Solidarnosc internationally, public speaking and got harassed. The women’s organization survived, although became religiously pro-life, working closely with the Catholic church like the rest of the Party. The feminists have not achieved anything. Pro-life movement was another important factor disallowing Polish feminists to fight for their rights - the Catholic church. In Polish history women had always served to preserve the Polish culture and the church has helped them to do it, so they have seen the religion as the only way to freedom and did not want to oppose to it. (Bystrydzienski, 2001) 1989 was a happy year for Poland because of the end of the communist regime. However, civil rights of women got limited; the democratic law opened up when women’s reproductive rights have been narrowed. (Fuchs, 2013) While the communistic government gave women a choice to control their own bodies in ’89 women became dependent on the ‘father state’. (Fuchs, 2013) As a result, the question that arose from this problem later was that if women wanted to be emancipated, who would they be emancipated from – the state? (Lawson, 2007) After the socialism’s fall, many theorists have identified the debate concerning abortion as fundamental to the reconfiguration of political arenas. In 1990 the Unborn Child Protection Bill was passed criminalizing people who help a woman to conduct an abortion. According to Jankowska, Poland was going to become a model democratic but Catholic state, especially since the Pope, critically speaking of abortion, was Polish. (Jankowska, 1991) However, some state that women had no idea what was going on in terms of abortion criminalization (Jankowska, 1991), other claim that there were protests and petitions by feminist women, although they had no idea how could they influence the state. (Chelstowska, 2005) In 1993 the new regulations came into power and abortion became permitted only in the case of rape criminalizing abortion almost totally. Nowicka asks how is it possible that while reproductive rights became one of the most controversial and fight for rights in public debates and in Poland it is still a taboo? (Nowicka, 2005) In Polish cul,ture the Catholic symbol of Matka Polka (Polish Mother), who can sacrifice her own necessities and ambitions to maintain the family for the nation, is still well preserved. (Fuchs, 2013)Based on those beliefs abortion is stigmatized even among the closest friends. (Chelstowska, 2005) Bystrydzienski states that current conditions in Poland are favorable in order to develop a significant feminist movement. (Bystrydzienski, 2001) Although, does he really think so? Feminism in the modern Polish society is always associated with lesbianithe sm, craziness of bra-burning or communism itself. Also, Polish women instead of taking Western developed feminists as an example state that they have nothing to offer, because they have never experiences the life in a communistic country, especially when the mistrust of and the government has remained. (Karpinski, 1995) Many people forget that feminism is simply addressing structural inequalities formed on the basis of gender difference. (Einhorn & Sever, 2003) When in 1997 Aleksander Kwasniewski, that time a president, signed a petition to decriminalize abortion in cases of deformed fetus or women’s life or health at risk the same Bystrydzienski called him a neo-communist, because in people’s minds the full legalization of abortion is still associated with communism and the society wants it to be swept away in order to maintain democracy. (Bystrydzienski, 2001)However, as it showed later, this law itself is not even observed because women qualified for abortion are unlikely to get it. (Shephard, 2001) Women can never be sure if the doctor at the hospital is not suggesting denial of abortion because of his own religious views. (Chelstowska, 2005) Nowadays the political scene is divided between supported and opponents of abortion. The opponents, right-wing of politicians are highly influenced by the Catholic church. (Dillon, 1996) In Poland the church is not directly separated from the state, and can block new values of reproductive rights proposed by feminists. (Fuchs, 2013) However, even when 95% of Polish population claim to be Catholic not all of them agree with the criminalization of abortion. Even Wislawa Szymborska, Polish Catholic poet, stated that: ”Abortion is wrong, but still better than leaving the babies in the trash or burying them in the woods” (Girard & Nowicka, 2002) Polish government supports only Catholic women groups or individual and this is also why non-feminist pro-life movement are louder and easier to spot. (Fuszara, 2005) Feminists groups however, do exist in Poland and the fact that we cannot easily hear about it does not mean they do not exist. Moreover the feminist movement is stronger in Poland than in other Central and Eastern European countries. (Fuchs, 2013) Feminists groups existed in Poland since the Polish Feminist Association was created. Pro-Feminina was the first one dedicated directy the issue of abortion and criticized as having communistic character. This is why Pro-Feminina was pushed to change the name to Federation for Women & Family Planning in 1991. (Bystrydzienski, 2001) These feminists organized first conferences on reproduction issues stating that young mothers are the state's problem. They said that reproductive rights should be considered as state's problem, not women’s problem. There is no sex education at schools, but family education only advises women to stay virgins until marriage that gives young women lack of knowledge of their rights, apart from the Catholic belief that abortion is a crime. (Szczuka, 2004, 14) The same federation submitted an act to the UN with statements what happened to women who got abortion refused, although no further actions by the UN were taken apart from listening to these victims. (Einhorn & Sever, 2003) The same group of feminists although, did achieve some influence by stating this and recently in 2012 Ruch Palikota (Palikot Movement Party) proposed a bill concerning abortion legalization. Although it got refused by the right-wing of the parliament leaving feminists with nothing again. (Girard & Nowicka, 2002) Some argued that feminists' actions were irrelevant to the issue of abortion, because it did not appear as women's issue but a political question. (Jelen & Doc Bradley, 2012) The Graff's book, the most powerful feminist publication, says that since '89 pro-life movement played a word game with feminists: 'fetus' and 'pregnant women' got replaced by 'unborn baby' and 'mother' making the women, as Magdalena Sroda states, nothing less but baby-killers. (Graff, 2003) Women’s organizations in Poland have succeeded in legitimizing some of their demands through references to the established law as well as to international human rights treaties. Nevertheless, legal individualism is a basic principle for most of the Polish feminists. Szczuka argues that women are silent while men are writing acts prohibiting them their reproductive rights. (Szczuka, 2004, 14) According to Fuchs, the director of Strategic Litigation Programme said that in Poland there would be no assembly of people protesting against a particular case, but if something wrong happens to people they know where to look for their rights and which procedures to follow. In the most famous case in the ECHR – Alicja Tysiac v. Poland, in the beginning Ms. Tysiac remained incognito and only later was convinced by The Federation that there was nothing to be ashamed of. (Fuchs, 2013) In her case art. 3, 6, 13, 14 were broken (Davies, 2010) because Tysiac was denied a legal in her case abortion while having myopia and after giving birth to a child she lost her eyesight. Tysiac's case was not the first or the last in ECHR. In 2004 a young women died because of the inflammation caused by her pregnancy, in 2008 a teenage rape victim was denied a legal abortion and moreover harrased by the priests. From the teenage girl’s sentence, however, we know that feminists did help in supporting this case in the ECHR: [mother]: “What we experienced later was hell for us and we faced complete insensitivity of everyone except the Federation for Women and Family Planning; this case would empower women and show them that there are organizations that can help them at the same time she hopes the government to understand violating women’s right and its consequences” (P. and S.v.Poland Chamber Judgement, 2012, 208-209) For Polish feminists economical aspect of abortion is more important than ethical. After ’89 public abortions migrated to private practices giving the doctors an opportunity for a tax-free fortune. Feminists state that the possession of money became the power in Poland. Chelstowska mentions the advert displayed on bus stops in the city of Lodz promoting so-called ‘abortion-tourism’ giving women the idea of traveling to another country to get a legal abortion instead of illegal in Poland in terrible conditions. Kazimiera Szczuka, one of the most important Polish feminists, says that women's reproductive rights are ridiculous: abortion is not legal, but birth control pills and condoms are available everywhere. (Szczuka, 2004, 5) Moreover, women are pushed to have a baby, when nobody cares about the same baby a second after it is born, it can die of out hunger because of mother's economic condition. (Szczuka, 2004, 4) The state does not try to help the mothers and this is why some feminists created a slogan 'God will give for the kids, the state for the bombs [about Iraq invasion]' (Szczuka, 2004, 9-10) However, some generous feminists created a non-profit foundation Women on Web that sells abortion pills after a short consultation and asks to pay only if the woman can afford it. (Chelstowska, 2011) Feminist movements are crucial to succeed in the fight for women’s reproductive rights. However, as I presented here, in Poland the movements and actions are too modest and not enough to make a significant change in public policies. Polish feminists work on individual bases instead of groups as they should, because women’s rights cannot be executed one by one, but only by combined stakeholders. (Fuchs, 2013) The government does not want to accept the decriminalization of abortion and not much has changed over the years. Legal mobilization usually have a huge impact on public reproductive policies, but Polish feminists did not achieve much yet. (Fuchs, 2013) Even when the abortion is officially legal in specific circumstances it is not performed by the medical staff because of their personal views. (Fuchs, 2013) However, even individual struggles for freedom of procreation and constant fight with the Catholic right-wing of the state that reduces the opened feminist’s activity has started a debate of a less traditional role of women in society. Fuszara argues that if not the antiabortion law then feminism in Poland would never have developed. (Fuszara, 2005) As some noted however, it is more about an approach to the state than about calling themselves feminists when Polish people still do not understand what does feminism mean. (Bystrydzienski, 2001) For Polish nation abortion is more than just a right achieved by feminist movements, it is also a perspective of women’s freedom. 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