The left and the majority agree on a common formulation

The inclusion of the right to abortion in the Constitution has more and more chance of succeeding. Despite the tremors of the Quatennens affair and the “obstruction” of the right and the far right in the National Assembly, the Insoumis scored a decisive point on Thursday, converging with the majority. With this text on the protection of abortion, included in the program of a day reserved for LFI in the hemicycle, it is a question of “preventing a regression” as recently in the United States or elsewhere in Europe, a pleaded the leader of the LFI group Mathilde Panot. In front of a full hemicycle, she quoted Simone de Beauvoir: “It will suffice for a political, economic or religious crisis, for women’s rights to be called into question”.

Left and majority agreed at midday on a common formulation for the inclusion of the right to abortion in the Constitution, in its article 66: “The law guarantees the effectiveness and equal access to the right to ‘Abortion “. The examination of the text is not complete but Mathilde Panot welcomed a “historic victory”, which she dedicated to “American, Polish and Hungarian” women. The initial LFI proposal also mentioned the right to contraception and made some fear the establishment of an unlimited right to abortion. This change in writing, resulting from cross-partisan work, therefore aims to remove reluctance.

The rewrite amendment was overwhelmingly passed, by 226 votes to 12, with 15 abstentions. 40 elected members of the RN group (out of 55 voters), whose members had anti-abortion positions, even rallied there, while the LRs shared. Right and extreme right had asserted that they considered these debates useless, the right to abortion not being threatened in France according to them.

A “parliamentary filibuster”

The debates had progressed painfully in the morning Thursday, while within the LR group went to the front the members of the Parliamentary Agreement for the Family, in favor of a “balance” between “freedom of women” and “protection of the unborn life”. The president of the RN Marine Le Pen group briefly defended the inclusion in the Constitution of the “current law in force” by a reference to the Public Health Code. “Not a single representative political movement” is against abortion, but this right is not “unconditional”, she argued, referring to the deadlines for abortion and the conscience clause of doctors. The Insoumis, like the Minister of Justice Eric Dupond-Moretti, spoke out against “parliamentary obstruction”, with numerous amendments from opponents of the text. The tone has risen many times, while the right and extreme right have made unrelated proposals on immigration or institutions.

Faced with a flurry of amendments, the Insoumis reluctantly gave up on two of their proposals initially on the agenda for their reserved day, one asking for a commission of inquiry into the “Uber Files” and the other an increase in the Smic at 1,600 euros net. Another proposal that unleashes passions, for a total ban on bullfighting, must be examined after that on abortion.

source site