French lawmakers, in a landmark joint session at the Palace of Versailles on Monday, passed a bill to embed a woman’s right to abortion in the French Constitution.
With an overwhelming vote of 780-72, nearly the entire joint session erupted into a prolonged standing ovation as the bill received approval.
Across France, jubilant celebrations ensued among women’s rights activists, welcoming the measure initiated by President Emmanuel Macron in response to abortion rights setbacks in US court rulings.
Both the National Assembly and the Senate had previously endorsed a bill to amend Article 34 of the French Constitution, explicitly guaranteeing a woman’s right to abortion.
Ahead of the historic vote, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal addressed the 925 lawmakers convened for the joint session at Versailles, urging them to position France as a champion of women’s rights and a global example in their defense.
“We have a moral debt to women,” Attal said. He paid tribute to Simone Veil, a prominent legislator, former health minister and key feminist who in 1975 championed the bill that decriminalized abortion in France.
“We have a chance to change history,” Attal said in a moving and determined speech. “Make Simone Veil proud,” he said to a standing ovation.
In January, the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, overwhelmingly endorsed the proposal. Subsequently, on Wednesday, the Senate ratified the bill, overcoming a significant obstacle for legislation pledged by Macron’s administration, aimed at solidifying “a woman’s right to have an abortion” as irreversible.
For the measure to pass, it requires a three-fifths majority in the joint session. None of France’s major political parties represented in parliament, including Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party and the conservative Republicans, have contested the right to abortion. Nevertheless, some legislators have previously opposed enshrining abortion rights into the constitution during votes in both chambers.
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Despite her party, which secured a record number of seats in the National Assembly two years ago, Marine Le Pen announced on Monday that her party would support the bill, while downplaying the significance of the occasion, stating, “there is no need to make this a historic day.”
The French public widely supports the right to an abortion, with recent polls indicating over 80% approval, consistent with earlier surveys. Furthermore, the same poll demonstrated a strong majority in favor of constitutional recognition of abortion rights.
Sarah Durocher, a prominent figure in the Family Planning movement, hailed Monday’s vote as “a victory for feminists and a defeat for the anti-choice activists.”
According to women’s rights and equality advocates, with the inclusion of the right to an abortion in the constitution, it will become substantially more difficult to impede women from voluntarily terminating pregnancies in France.
“We increased the level of protection to this fundamental right,” said Anne-Cécile Mailfert of the Women’s Foundation. “It’s a guarantee for women today and in the future to have the right to abort in France.”
In the preamble of the bill, the government contended that the United States faces a jeopardy to the right to abortion. This concern arises from the Supreme Court’s reversal of a longstanding ruling in 2022, which previously ensured this right for half a century.
“Unfortunately, this event is not isolated: in many countries, even in Europe, there are currents of opinion that seek to hinder at any cost the freedom of women to terminate their pregnancy if they wish,” the introduction to the French legislation says.
Changing the constitution in France is a meticulous process and occurs infrequently. Since its inception in 1958, the French Constitution has undergone 17 amendments. The most recent amendment took place in 2008, broadening the powers of parliament and bestowing upon French citizens the ability to present their grievances to the Constitutional Court.
(AP)
