Condemning “the decline in women’s rights (and) sexual and reproductive rights around the world, including in the United States and in some EU Member States”, the European Parliament voted in favour of including the right to abortion in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in a resolution adopted on Thursday 7 July (324 votes in favour, 155 against and 38 abstentions) (see EUROPE 12986/25).
According to MEPs, a proposal to amend Article 7 of the Charter should be submitted to the EU Council to add that “everyone has the right to a safe and legal abortion”. To this end, the European Council is once again invited to decide whether to convene a convention to revise the Treaties.
Coming from a country that still bans abortion, the European Parliament President, Roberta Metsola from Malta, known for her anti-abortion stance, did not participate in the vote. She has always said that during her term as President she would defend the majority position of the Parliament.
At the end of June, the US Supreme Court struck down the national guarantee of abortion rights, leaving each US state free to restrict or even ban abortion. In Malta, an American tourist was rushed to Spain after she was refused a voluntary termination of her pregnancy when her life was in danger. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)