Rights court sanctions Poland in abortion case

June 13, 2011

The Polish government may have to revise its abortion legislation after an exceptionally tragic case in which a woman carrying a foetus with genetic abnormalities was refused an abortion multiple times. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) intervened in the case, charging the Polish government with violating the woman’s rights under articles 3 (prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment) and 8 (respect for family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights, in denying her timely access to prenatal tests to determine whether the foetus she was carrying suffered from genetic abnormalities.  (BioEdge)