[30 October 2012] - The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on Tuesday condemned Poland's treatment of a 14-year-old rape victim who sought an abortion. The victim initially faced charges of unlawful intercourse by the Polish criminal justice system. The ECHR articulated four violations of the European Convention on Human Rights. The ECHR found two violations of Article 8's right to respect for private life when the girl was hindered in her attempts to obtain an abortion, and when one of the hospitals released details of her case to the media including her personal information. Further, the court found a violation of Article 5's right to liberty when she was placed into a juvenile home to separate her from parents who ostensibly advocated for the abortion. Finally, the ECHR found a violation of Article 3's prohibition against degrading treatment when she was forced to speak with a priest, when her mother was forced to sign a consent form stating that her daughter may die during the procedure, and when she was targeted for unlawful intercourse. The ECHR awarded money damages to the victim from the government of Poland.
Last year the ECHR ruled that a Polish woman who had been denied genetic testing and an abortion was subjected to "inhuman treatment." The court found violations of Article 3 and Article 8. In 2010 the ECHR ruled that Ireland failed to provide "effective and accessible procedures" to allow a Lithuanian woman to assert her constitutional right to a lawful abortion. In 2007 Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski declared that Poland planned to appeal a ruling by the ECHR that found Poland in violation of Article 8 for prohibiting a pregnant woman who had a serious risk of vision loss if she carried the pregnancy to term from obtaining an abortion. The ECHR later rejected this appeal, reinforcing that the Polish government did not provide any procedural framework to resolve a dispute concerning whether a medical exception should be granted, or to facilitate "effective mechanisms capable of determining whether the conditions for obtaining a lawful abortion had been met." JURIST guest columnist Gerolf Hagens has analysed the ECHR's rulings on abortion.
Further Information:
- URUGUAY: Country becomes first in South America to allow abortion (22 October 2012)
- DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Pregnant teen at centre of abortion debate dies (21 August 2012)
- TURKEY: Abortion ban unacceptable, Council of Europe warns (9 June 2012)
- ARGENTINA: Court decriminalises abortion in rape cases (15 March 2012)
- ABORTION: UN expert links the decriminalisation of abortion to the right to health (14 November 2011)
- NICARAGUA: Ban on therapeutic abortions needlessly endangers lives of girls and women, say activists (10 November 2011)
- BRAZIL: Child rape case revives debate on abortion (16 March 2009)
- More on children's rights in Poland
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Last updated 31/10/2012 16:42:47
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