The European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday called for the introduction of a voluntary "solidarity mechanism" to guarantee that every woman in the European Union has access to safe abortion.
Abortion is a national competence, and EU Member States have very different laws in this area. In Belgium, the right to abortion has been regulated by law for many years, but in Malta, for example, voluntary termination of pregnancy is still strictly prohibited.
Therefore, the Parliament calls on the European Commission to develop a financial scheme to support Member States that wish to offer abortion care to women who face legal or financial obstacles in their own country. The mechanism would be set up on a voluntary basis, with European support.
With the resolution, approved by 358 votes to 202, Parliament is throwing its weight behind a European citizens' initiative on abortion. The ‘My Voice, My Choice’ movement succeeded this year in gathering 1.2 million signatures with its call to create such a solidarity fund.
"We started this campaign because we wanted a different Europe, one that listens to its citizens and that will stop looking away while women's fundamental rights and lives are threatened," said Nika Kovač, coordinator of the My Voice, My Choice campaign, after the vote.
"Today was a good day for Europe, democracy and women’s rights," she added.
The Commission must respond by the beginning of March. It is not obliged to comply with the citizens' initiative, but it must justify its response.
