On International Women’s Day, France sent a strong statement of support for women’s rights by including the right to an abortion in its constitution on Friday.
In a unique public ceremony, Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti sealed the constitutional change using a printing press from the 19th century. The cobblestoned Place Vendome erupted in cheers as France became the first nation to specifically protect the right to an abortion in its national charter.
Following an overwhelming vote by French MPs earlier this week, the policy may finally go into effect thanks to Friday’s ceremony.
While abortion is a contentious topic in the United States, it is legal across almost all of Europe and has strong support in France, where people see it more as a public health problem than a political one. With the support of several far-right parliamentarians, the constitutional change was passed by French lawmakers on Monday in a vote of 780 to 72.
On a day dedicated to furthering women’s rights throughout the world, Friday’s commemoration in Paris was an important occasion. From Jakarta, Indonesia, to Mexico City and beyond, there are seminars, marches, and demonstrations taking place.
Campaigners for women’s rights all throughout the globe, especially in regions where girls find it difficult to get birth control or maternity care, have praised the French constitutional change. President Emmanuel Macron of France described it as a direct outcome of the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned long-standing abortion rights.
Critics of Macron questioned why he went after the proposal in a nation where girls suffer from several other issues but where there isn’t a clear danger to abortion rights.
Although some French women saw the move as a significant victory, others pointed out that not all French girls really have access to abortion care.
The action was described as a “smokescreen” by 32-year-old Arya Meroni.
“Many family planning clinics have closed due to the government’s destruction of our health care system,” she said at the annual “Feminist Night March” in Paris on the eve of International Women’s Day.
The number of French women who are slain by their boyfriends is consistently high, and there are still issues with prosecuting cases of prominent men and celebrities abusing women sexually. In addition, French women often get lesser pensions and wages, particularly non-white women.
Given the rise of hard-right organizations and their desire to roll back liberties throughout Europe, Macron’s administration said that the abortion amendment was necessary to prevent a situation for women in France like to that of the United States.
Macron will lead the ceremony to ratify the constitution. The amendment to the 1958 French Constitution will be engraved using a 100-kilogram (220-pound) press that was owned by Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti in 1810.
“The freedom of women to have recourse to an abortion, which is guaranteed,” will be one of its lines. This is another first: the ceremony will take place outside and be open to the public.
Following the example set by the former Yugoslavia, whose 1974 constitution stated that “A person is free to decide on having children,” is what France is doing. The constitutions of the governments that succeeded Yugoslavia had similar wording, although they did not explicitly say that abortion rights were protected.
Several nations had irate protest marches, so not everyone thought the day was worth celebrating.
The leader of the 1.3 million-member Danish Trade Union Confederation took issue with the disparities in treatment between men and women in some contexts.
Morten Skov Christensen said, “Unfortunately, we still see a wide range of other equality problems, including sky-high pay differences, professions dominated by one sex, a gender-segregated labor market, and harassment cases that primarily affect women.”
In additional Friday events:
Voters in Ireland will have to decide whether to amend the constitution to strike out sections that discuss women’s domestic responsibilities and expand the definition of the family.
Attendees at Seoul street demonstrations looked forward to the parliamentary elections in South Korea that take place next month and expressed optimism that the political parties will give gender equality first priority.
Vladimir Putin praised Russian ladies participating in the battle and those waiting at home for their loved ones who had been sent. The UN claims that human rights in Russia have worsened since the military’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Calling attention to violence against women, demonstrators in Istanbul want to spark marches in several places. Turkey often experiences political and even violent protests that are motivated by women’s demands for better working conditions. The worldwide theme for this year is “Inspire Inclusion.”
Protesters in Indonesia called for the International Labor Organization’s conventions on gender equality and the abolition of harassment and violence in the workplace to be adopted. Labor rights organizations in Thailand protested for improved working conditions by marching to the Government House, while protestors against violence in the capital of the Philippines were halted by police close to the presidential palace, resulting in a short altercation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on social media that the government of India has reduced the cost of cooking gas cylinders by 100 rupees ($1.20), citing the action as being “in line with our commitment to empowering women.”
In a study published on International Women’s Day, the UN children’s agency said that over 230 million women and girls have had female genital mutilation worldwide. It said that in the last eight years, the number has climbed by thirty million.
Additionally, there is a concerning trend that more girls are being exposed to the procedure at earlier ages—many of them before turning five. As a result, there is less time to act,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.
International Women’s Day was formally declared a national holiday in roughly 20 nations, including Afghanistan, Russia, and the Ukraine, in 1977.
SOURCE: NBC NEWS
