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France Makes History: First Nation to Constitutionalize Abortion Rights

MPs and senators convened in a joint session of Parliament in Versailles, southwestern Paris, France on March 4, 2024, to enshrine the right to abortion in the country's constitution. While the country celebrates, Anti-abortion groups and far-right figures, including Marine Le Pen, voiced criticism in response to the vote

France Makes History: First Nation to Constitutionalize Abortion Rights

In a historic move, France has officially incorporated the right to abortion into its constitution, marking a global first. Women's rights advocates celebrated this groundbreaking decision, while anti-abortion groups expressed strong criticism. Parliamentarians voted overwhelmingly, with a resounding 780-72, to amend the country's 1958 constitution, establishing women's "guaranteed freedom" to undergo abortion. The announcement of the result in the Versailles parliament was met with a standing ovation.

 

President Emmanuel Macron proposed this historic action as a preventive measure against the erosion of abortion rights witnessed in the United States. The vote occurred during a special joint session of parliament and garnered a prolonged standing ovation from lawmakers. With this amendment, individual states regain the authority to prohibit the procedure, effectively terminating the right to abortion for millions of women.

 

Despite abortion being legal in France since 1975, recent polls indicate that approximately 85% of the public favors amending the constitution to safeguard the right to terminate a pregnancy. Both chambers of the French Parliament, the National Assembly, and the Senate have already passed a bill to amend Article 34 of the constitution, explicitly affirming a woman's guaranteed right to abortion.

 

In central Paris, abortion rights activists erupted in cheers and applause against the luminous backdrop of the sparkling Eiffel Tower. As the vote results were announced on a giant screen, displaying the message "MyBodyMyChoice," the crowd celebrated. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal conveyed a message to lawmakers before the vote, stating, "We're conveying a message to all women: your body is yours, and no one else can make decisions for you."

 

Celebrations unfolded nationwide as women's rights activists applauded the measure pledged by President Emmanuel Macron in response to the curtailment of abortion rights through court rulings in the United States.

 


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