WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The federal government of Poland, the place a near-total abortion ban is in place, confronted accusations Monday of making a “pregnancy register” because the nation expands the quantity of medical knowledge being digitally saved on sufferers.
Girls’s rights advocates and opposition politicians worry ladies face unprecedented surveillance given the conservative views of a ruling celebration that has already tightened what was one in all Europe’s most restrictive abortion legal guidelines.
They worry the brand new knowledge could possibly be utilized by police and prosecutors towards ladies whose pregnancies finish, even in circumstances of miscarriage, or that girls could possibly be tracked by the state in the event that they order abortion tablets or journey overseas for an abortion.
“A pregnancy registry in a country with an almost complete ban on abortion is terrifying,” mentioned Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bąk, a left-wing lawmaker.
The matter gained consideration Monday after {Health} Minister Adam Niedzielski signed an ordinance Friday increasing the quantity of data to be saved in a central database on sufferers, together with info on allergic reactions, blood sort and pregnancies.
The {health} ministry spokesman, Wojciech Andrusiewicz, sought to allay considerations, saying solely medical professionals can have entry to the information, and that the adjustments are being made on the suggestion of the European Union.
The trouble, he mentioned, is supposed to enhance the medical remedy of sufferers, together with in the event that they search remedy elsewhere within the 27-member EU. Within the case of pregnant ladies, he mentioned this may assist docs instantly know which ladies mustn't get X-rays or sure medicines.
“Nobody is creating a pregnancy register in Poland,” he informed the TVN24 all-news station.
However Marta Lempart, the chief of a ladies’s rights group, Girls’s Strike, mentioned she doesn't belief the federal government to maintain info on ladies’s pregnancies from the police and prosecutors. She informed The Related Press that police in Poland are already questioning ladies on how their pregnancies finish, tipped off by disgruntled companions.
“Being pregnant means that police can come to you any time and prosecutors can come to you to ask you questions about your pregnancy,” Lempart mentioned.
The brand new system means many Polish ladies will now keep away from the state medical system throughout their pregnancies, with wealthier ladies in search of personal remedy or touring overseas, even for prenatal care. In the meantime, poorer ladies in Poland will face an elevated threat of medical issues and even loss of life by avoiding prenatal care, Lempart fears.
Lempart additionally worries that info gained by police could possibly be shared with state media to hurt individuals’s reputations.
She already is aware of how that may occur. In 2020, Lempart examined optimistic for COVID-19, and the data was reported by state tv even earlier than she acquired her outcomes.
Poland bans abortion in nearly all circumstances, with exceptions solely when a girl’s life or {health} is endangered or if the being pregnant outcomes from rape or incest.
For years abortion was allowed within the case of fetuses with congenital defects. That exception was struck down by the constitutional courtroom in 2020.
In apply, Polish ladies in search of to terminate their pregnancies order abortions tablets or journey to Germany, the Czech Republic and different international locations the place the process is allowed. Whereas self-administering abortion tablets is authorized, serving to another person just isn't.
Activist Justyna Wydrzyńska is dealing with as much as three years in jail for serving to a sufferer of home violence entry abortion tablets. Amnesty Worldwide says it's the first such case in Europe.
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