French parliament exonerates women convicted of abortion before 1975. Law passed unanimously

French parliamentarians on Thursday, December 18, unanimously adopted a bill that exonerates women convicted of abortion before it was legalized in 1975. The measure was welcomed by feminist organizations, which consider it a landmark in the field of reproductive rights, AFP and Le Monde note.

The unanimous vote in Parliament's lower house, the National Assembly, finalized the adoption of the bill, which had been approved by the Senate in March and supported by the government.

The text of the law recognizes that the application of the previous legislation, which “criminalized the recourse to abortion, its practice, access to abortion and information about abortion”, constituted “an infringement on the protection of women's health, sexual and reproductive autonomy”, as well as “women's rights”. According to the document, the laws in force before 1975 led to “numerous deaths” and caused “physical and moral suffering”.

“It is an act of justice for those thousands of lives destroyed by unjust laws,” said Aurore Bergé, Minister Delegate for Gender Equality, in a speech in which she recalled an abortion her mother had. “We have a responsibility to repair, but above all a duty to sound the alarm,” she added, pointing to attacks on women's rights “all over the world.”

Between 1870 and 1975, more than 11,660 people were convicted of obtaining or seeking an abortion, according to official estimates.

The law does not provide for compensation, but stipulates the establishment of a commission to help collect and transmit the testimonies of women forced to resort to clandestine abortions, as well as those who helped them.

The European Parliament adopted this week a text calling on the European Union to facilitate the access of all women on the continent to “safe” abortions, given that access differs significantly from one country to another.

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