A new United Nations document is demanding that conservative Poland makes abortion easily available to young girls.
The document, issued in October by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, pushes the pro-life Catholic country to “make the conditions for abortion less restrictive and, in relation to adolescent girls, to reflect the right of the child to express her views and the best interests of the child.”
“The strict legal requirements for abortion and the lack of a clear procedure for conducting legal abortion under current legislation, together with social stigma, hinder girls’ access to legal abortion,” according to the document. It also calls for “unimpeded access to sexual and reproductive health services” for adolescent girls and boys.
Many Polish groups are outraged by the document. One newspaper said it looked like “it was written at the request of leftist politicians,” while another called it “absurd!”, according to Breitbart News.
“In one of the most controversial recommendations, it even calls for an end to so-called ‘windows of life’ – small rooms built into the walls of convents where desperate mothers can leave unwanted children,” according to Breitbart.
It also commands Poland to “establish clear standards for a uniform and non-restrictive interpretation of the conditions for legal abortion and relevant procedures.”
According to Polish law, abortion is illegal except in the following circumstances, Polish journalist Natalia Dueholm told LifeNews. First, when the woman’s life or health is endangered, there are no legal limits as to the time when it can be performed. Second, when the pregnancy is a result of a criminal act, abortion is permitted until the 12th week. Finally, abortion is legal up until viability when a doctor believes the baby has a severe and irreversible handicap or an incurable and life threatening disease.
Keep up with the latest pro-life news and information on Twitter. Follow @LifeNewsHQ
The Polish government released data showing that 757 children were aborted in public hospitals in 2012. Approximately 700 of them were aborted because they were suspected of being sick or carrying a genetic disorder. This number is steadily growing.
The UN has pushed countries such as Poland and Ireland to expand abortions before.
In 2014, the Committee on the Rights of the Child issued a report attacking the Catholic Church for being pro-life and pressured its leaders to support abortion, Lifenews previously reported. The report, among similar things, recommends that the Catholic Church identify “circumstances under which access to abortion services can be permitted” (section 55) and “overcome[s] all the barriers and taboos surrounding adolescent sexuality that hinder their access to sexual and reproductive information, including on family planning and contraceptives” (section 57a).
Pro-life groups continue to advocate for the United Nations to end its pro-abortion agenda and instead include unborn children among the vulnerable lives it says it wants to protect.
In 2014 on the 25th anniversary of the committee, Irish pro-life advocate Cora Sherlock called on the Committee on the Rights of the Child to stop ignoring unborn children.
Sherlock told the committee: “The Committee’s call for the rights of all children, ‘including the most marginalised and vulnerable’ to be respected can only be taken seriously when the right to life of the unborn is protected. What child is more vulnerable than an unborn baby? The UN cannot purport to support human rights unless it takes measures to encourage Member States to protect unborn children and their mothers.”
