Poland sees major victory for unborn with Down syndrome

In a major win for the unborn with Down syndrome, the Supreme Court of Poland recently invalidated a provision of a law which permitted abortion on the basis of disability.

While the law in question actually bans abortion in most circumstances, it contained exceptions for “when prenatal tests or other medical grounds indicate a high probability of severe and irreversible impairment of the fetus or an incurable life-threatening disease,” per Polish News.

The court found that provision to be a violation of human rights, with Chief Justice Julia Przylebska declaring it “incompatible” with the Polish constitution.

The decision could save thousands of unborn lives – just last year, Poland recorded 1,100 abortions, a vast majority of which appear to be motivated by fetal diagnoses of disability. According to CNN, 98 percent of abortions in Poland are performed because of fetal anomalies.

The petitioners argued:

“Since the attribute of human dignity belongs to man from the moment of the inception of human life, and the protection of the right to life is a direct consequence of the protection of human dignity… the Constitution of the Republic of Poland leads to the conclusion that the right to life is a human right in stage of development, at which he is also entitled to the protection of human dignity, and therefore also in the prenatal period… there is an obligation to protect human life in the prenatal phase and the prohibition of discriminating against conceived human beings by public authorities. Since life begins at conception, from the first day of pregnancy, constitutional protection applies to human life in every phase of it.”

We are so glad to see Poland stand and protect the unborn with disabilities! It is our hope that similar policies will be made in more and more countries around the world as people recognize the value of the lives of those with Down syndrome.