Gathered for a plenary session in Brussels on Thursday, 11 April, MEPs adopted—by a vote of 336 in favour, 163 against, and 39 abstentions—a resolution calling for the right to abortion to be incorporated into the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
This matter concerns a call that had already been made, specifically in July 2022, to condemn the rescission of abortion rights observed in the United States.
Opposed to the rescission of women’s rights and the restrictions on sexual and reproductive health and rights (within the EU), the resolution proposes that Article 3 of the charter be amended to guarantee everyone the right to physical autonomy and universal access to sexual and reproductive health services, including safe and legal abortion, without discrimination. Nevertheless, any amendment to the charter requires the unanimity of the Member States, and health remains a national competence.
The text also urges that abortion be fully decriminalised, in line with the 2022 WHO guidelines, and criticises the severe restrictions in Poland and Malta. It highlights the problem of certain doctors and institutions refusing abortions on the grounds of conscience, risking the health of the people concerned.
Faced with this, the European Parliament is calling for sex education to be comprehensive, for safe contraceptives to be made available free of charge, and for barriers to abortion to be removed—for disadvantaged women in particular. Furthermore, it expresses its concern as to the funding of anti-gender and anti-choice groups and calls on the European Commission and Member States to not support them financially and to increase funding for reproductive health.
See the adopted text: https://aeur.eu/f/bqm (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)