Today the Sejm is set to appoint an extraordinary committee to examine four draft laws expanding abortion options. This step will occur only if the Sejm chooses to continue work on the four projects presented by the Left, KO and Third Way. The committee will comprise 27 members and will be notably dominated by women. Nominations for committee slots were expected to be announced last night.
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In accordance with parity rules, the ruling party PiS will hold 11 seats on the committee, KO nine, Poland 2050–TD two, PSL–TD two, the Left two, and Konfederacja one.
Sources close to the arrangement revealed that PiS selected Marlena Maląg, Katarzyna Sójka, Joanna Borowiak, Dominika Chorosińska, Agnieszka Górska, Maria Kurowska, Anna Kwiecień, Anna Milczanowska, Olga Semeniuk-Patkowska, Józefa Szczurek-Żelazko and Agata Wojtyszek as its representatives. Monika Rosa of KO announced that she would represent KO together with Katarzyna Piekarska, Anna Sobolak, Jolanta Niezgodzka, Alicja Łepkowska-Gościńska, Sylwia Bielawska, Dorota Łoboda, Maciej Wróbel and Paweł Bliźniuk. MPs from PSL were represented by Urszula Pasławska and Urszula Nowogórska. Poland 2050 was represented by Żaneta Cwalina-Śliwowska and Ewa Szymanowska. The president of the Left Club, Anna Maria Żukowska, stated that she would sit on the committee along with the club’s vice-president, Marcelina Zawisza. The Confederation chose MP Karina Bosak as its representative.
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Vote on abortion
On Friday the Sejm will resume the debate on four bills intended to amend the anti-abortion law. These projects were submitted by KO, Lewica and Trzecia Droga. Marshal of the Sejm Szymon Hołownia announced that if parliamentarians decide to refer these proposals to an extraordinary committee, the Sejm will appoint such a panel on Friday.
If the Sejm makes this decision during Friday’s votes, the committee will be appointed immediately as the votes take place. Hołownia explained this possibility.
Last November the Left submitted two bills to liberalize abortion regulations. One would partially decriminalize abortion and its assistance, while the other would permit termination of pregnancy up to the end of the twelfth week. At the end of January this year a proposal from a group of MPs within the Civic Coalition was submitted to the Sejm, arguing that a pregnant person should be entitled to health care in the form of a termination during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy. In addition to these projects, Trzecia Droga, a coalition of PSL and Polska 2050, filed a bill at the end of February reversing the Constitutional Court’s 2020 ruling on abortion. TD politicians also signaled a referendum on the issue.
The Constitutional Tribunal has repeatedly ruled that abortion on demand is unconstitutional today. Legally there is no right to abortion. Under Polish law, a fetus is a legally protected person from conception, and terminating its life is punishable. Only in special cases is there an exception to this offense.
READ ALSO:
— Judge Pawłowicz reminds: MPs cannot adopt laws that contradict previous rulings of the Constitutional Court. Also about abortion
— Prof. Strzembosz: PO abortion law is immoral, shameful and contrary to scientific knowledge and human rights
– Operation “Stop the slaughter. Call your MP.” Ordo Iuris appeals against the first reading of abortion laws in the Sejm
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Source: wPolityce