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| Poland abortion: Parliament rejects abortion ban after women stage all-out strike | Poland abortion: Parliament rejects abortion ban after women stage all-out strike |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Polish lawmakers have voted overwhelmingly to reject draft legislation that would introduce a near-total ban on abortion following mass protests in over 60 cities across the country. | |
| Some 100,000 women dressed in black demonstrated throughout Poland on Monday against plans to tighten the country's already restrictive abortion rules, including banning the procedure even in cases of rape, with prison terms for women ending a pregnancy. | |
| The hastily arranged vote presents the first major domestic setback for the ruling conservatives, of which many members initially backed the proposal. | The hastily arranged vote presents the first major domestic setback for the ruling conservatives, of which many members initially backed the proposal. |
| Two weeks ago a majority of lawmakers voted to consider the proposal, sending it to a commission for further study. | |
| But, the party backed away from it under massive social pressure, and lawmakers voted against it 352-58 on Thursday. | |
| The mostly Catholic nation already has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe, with abortion only allowed in rare cases — rape or incest, when the mother's life is in danger or the foetus is badly damaged. | |
| The proposal for further tightening the law emerged from a citizen’s initiative that that garnered some 450,000 signatures and was supported by the Roman Catholic Church but hugely unpopular with many Poles. | |
| Dubbed “Black Monday”, women boycotted work and dressed in black across Poland for the day. In Warsaw, 30,000 people turned out to protest the change. | |
| They held signs with messages such as “Keep your rosaries off my ovaries” and “I wish I could abort my government” as they chanted outside government offices. | |
| Minister Jarsolaw Gowin said the demonstrations by thousands of women had “caused us to think and taught us humility”. | |
| The remarks made by the Science and Higher Education Minister on Wednesday hinted that Poland’s right-wing leadership would not proceed with the proposal. | |
| Additional reporting by agencies | Additional reporting by agencies |