CEDAW Committee Orders Poland to Recognize Fundamental Right to Abortion
by Rebecca Oas, C-Fam:
There is a nasty little committee at the United Nations called CEDAW that thinks they have the right to tell governments they must liberalize their abortion laws. They are at it again in a recent report, ordering Poland to legalize abortion. It should be noted that this committee has no authority to make such demands, but they do it anyway, and, sadly, some governments listen to them. Rebecca Oas, Ph.D. has the story.
The UN treaty body that focuses on women’s rights published a report this week accusing Poland of violating women’s rights by restricting abortion. The CEDAW Committee called on Poland to support “the right to abortion as a fundamental right” and adopt standards in line with the guidelines of the World Health Organization, including “total decriminalization and legalization of abortion.”
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk recently told reporters “[t]here will be no majority in this parliament for legal abortion, in the full sense of the word, until the next elections. Let’s not kid ourselves.” Tusk was elected to a four-year term last fall, and is considered a centrist who leads a coalition government with divergent views on the issue. The previous Polish government took a more strongly pro-life stance, and since they lost power, abortion advocates have seized the opportunity to increase their pressure.
The CEDAW Committee report was in response to information sent by abortion activists, including the Center for Reproductive Rights, alleging that Poland’s abortion restrictions violated the terms of the CEDAW treaty, which Poland has ratified.
The CEDAW Committee has a long history of pressuring countries to liberalize their abortion laws, despite the treaty making no mention of abortion, either explicitly or euphemistically, and the lack of any internationally recognized human right to abortion in any UN human rights treaty or General Assembly resolution.
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