A government-appointed commission in Germany has demanded the legalization of abortion within 12 weeks of pregnancies. As revealed, the all-female expert commission was set up by Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party government.
In a report released on Monday, the body recommended amending the country’s 153-year-old law, which made abortion illegal in the country.
Abortion has always been illegal in the country except in circumstances such as rape or where the life of the mother was in danger. The experts have therefore called for an amendment to the country’s legal framework. It further described the law as outdated and detrimental to women.
However, opposition lawmakers from the conservative Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union alliance and Alternative for Deutschland disputed the commission’s demand. According to these lawmakers, the existing legal framework enjoys wider acceptance of protecting the unborn child. They further argue that despite the illegality of abortion, violations of it rarely lead to prosecutions.
In addition, lawmakers lamented the increase in the abortion rate and called for stricter enforcement of the existing law.
The report further suggests that the criminalization of anyone who goes ahead with abortion is untenable. It reads: “The fundamental illegality of abortion in the early stages of pregnancy is not sustainable.” However, the experts noted that terminations of foetuses at or above 22 weeks should be forbidden.
They pointed out that Germany’s existing law on abortion is incompatible with international standards.
On Friday, lawmakers in Poland under the government of Donald Tusk, also took steps to amend the country’s abortion law. The lawmakers plan to relax the country’s strict abortion rules and decriminalize the act. The initiative was welcomed by the Center for Reproductive Rights in Europe.
Similarly, supporters of change in Germany also welcomed the initiative by the French president, Emmanuel Macron. The president suggested that the European Union should guarantee women’s right to abortion in its charter of fundamental rights, and for France to enshrine abortion as a constitutional right. Lawmakers said the impetus for this initiative was the US Supreme Court decision.
