• The criminalization of abortion contributes to unsafe abortion, adversely impacts vulnerable and marginalized women, and inherently limits the rights of women to physical and psychological integrity, to dignity and worth as human beings, and to be free from all forms of discrimination. International human rights law supports the progressive decriminalization of abortion to protect the lives and health of women and to improve their quality of life.
• Given that any state action on abortion impacts on the human rights of women, international law sets limits on the state power to criminalize abortion based on principles of non-arbitrariness and proportionality.
• To ensure criminal abortion laws are non-arbitrary and proportionate, international human rights law requires as a minimum the decriminalization of abortion on the ground of risk of serious fetal malformation, and procedural protections to ensure safe and respectful access to services under this ground to the full extent of the law.

So far, the Polish government has systematically ignored the decisions of international institutions. Governing bodies such as the European Union, European Court of Human Rights, European Court of Justice, and the Council of Europe, have called on Poland to immediately grant women access to legal abortion care and services. There are severe international concerns that Poland’s current far-right government has totally undermined the rule of law. The European Court of justice even issued an injunction against the implementation of Poland’s new law on the Supreme Court, freezing any changes to the existing system.