French Lawmakers Push to Codify Abortion Rights in the Wake of Roe v Wade

After the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, French women became increasingly vigilant. They observed with concern as American women abruptly lost their longstanding abortion rights. The possibility of France following suit loomed large in their minds.

A year and a half later, France is on track to embed the right to abortion in its constitution, a step that would create significant obstacles for future parliaments looking to undermine it with restrictive laws.

Leading the effort are left-wing lawmakers like Vogel, but the bill has attracted uncommon support from across party lines. The French government, including President Emmanuel Macron, has backed it, with Macron recently pledging that "in 2024, women's right to have an abortion will be irreversible."

According to Stephanie Hennette-Vauchez, a public law professor and constitutional expert, if the bid is successful, the French constitution will be the first in the world to include the right to abortion.

Screens display the results of the senate vote on a draft law for the constitutionalization of the right to abortion at the Senate in Paris on February 1.

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Protesters voice their support for abortion rights during a debate at the Senate in Paris.

The motion has received widespread support in France, but it has also faced criticism from right-wing lawmakers. Jordan Bardella, president of the far-right National Rally party, and others have argued that constitutionalizing abortion rights in France is unnecessary given that they are not currently at risk.

At the same time, advocates for women's rights argue that while it is important to enshrine abortion rights in the constitution, it will not address the growing issue of access, particularly in rural areas of France.

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Access to abortion in France varies greatly depending on the region, according to French Senator Laurence Rossignol. She stated that in Paris, access is "much easier than if you live in what we now call a medical desert."

The overturning of Roe v. Wade last summer hit too close to home for many women in France, including popular French TV host Enora Malagré. Having spoken openly about her own abortion at age 20, Malagré expressed her distress upon hearing the news. "When we heard in France that the United States was moving in this direction, we cried a lot," she told CNN. "We said to ourselves, if this is happening to our friends in the US, it's catastrophic."

Abortion rights in France are safeguarded by a 1975 law that has undergone several amendments, including a recent one in 2022 which extended the allowable time for legal abortions from 12 to 14 weeks of pregnancy. However, like all laws, it remains subject to potential revocation through a vote in the French parliament.

Enora Malagré attends the "L'Abbe Pierre, Une Vie De Combats" premiere on October 10, 2023 in Paris.

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Amending the constitution is a difficult process, requiring a national referendum or a 3/5th majority vote in the French Congress, which is composed of both chambers of parliament. Proponents of the bill argue that constitutionalization would protect abortion rights even if a pro-life majority were elected.

Rossignol argues that the reversal of Roe v. Wade had a significant impact on public opinion in France, creating a fear that abortion rights could be at risk at any time.

She told CNN that the United States is seen as a liberal country and one that is similar to their own. The idea that such things could happen in the US has caused people to question their own safety. Similar concerns are being expressed by organizations in France that are working to protect reproductive rights, as they fear that global progress in this area may be rolled back.

According to Sarah Durocher, president of Planning Familial, the French branch of Planned Parenthood International, when the far right came to power in some countries, their initial target was often the right to abortion. She expressed concern that France might not be an exception to this trend.

For instance, Hungary's hardline nationalist government made it compulsory for women to listen to the fetal heartbeat before an abortion. In Poland, abortion is only permitted in cases of rape, incest, or a threat to the mother's health. The conservative Law and Justice party further restricted abortion in 2020, outlawing it on the grounds of fetal defect. Additionally, Argentina recently elected a far-right president who has vowed to reverse the abortion rights obtained by the country in 2020.

Now or never

In France, recent polling data suggests 86% of people are now favorable to the constitutionalization of abortion rights.

A draft text was presented by the French government to Frances highest administrative court on November 3. Upon approval, the Congress will gather in the Palace of Versailles to conduct a vote on the amendment. If a majority vote is secured, the amendment will be integrated into the constitution.

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Macrons government currently holds enough support in parliament to presume a positive vote.

"We must act now," Vogel declared, having submitted the initial draft proposal in August 2022. "We hold a majority in parliament and in society. It's now or never," she emphasized.

There is a growing concern, shared by Vogel, that the increasing support for right-wing political parties in France could hinder the passage of a similar amendment in the upcoming French elections in 2027.

Despite her support for the bill, right-wing political leader Marine Le Pen, who secured 41.5% of the French vote in the 2022 presidential election, has consistently backed efforts to restrict abortion rights. Last year, the National Rally lawmaker opposed extending the legal abortion time frame from 12 to 14 weeks, stating that the medical act changes significantly in nature during those additional two weeks and it becomes more traumatizing for women.

Le Pen, along with other conservative leaders, has dismissed the proposal to constitutionalize abortion rights as "completely unnecessary." Earlier this year, an anti-abortion group called The Survivors publicly displayed this sentiment by putting stickers with anti-abortion messages on Paris's public rental bikes.

In a statement issued in May, the group said this move was a direct response to the efforts to enshrine abortion rights in the French constitution.

Symbolic gesture or real change?

There has been debate among supporters of amending the constitution over the precise wording. The government's current proposal allows women the "freedom" to obtain abortions, rather than the "right" as mentioned in Vogel's initial draft.

The article states that the law determines the conditions under which a woman can exercise her guaranteed freedom to have a voluntary interruption of pregnancy. Hennette-Vauchez, a constitutional expert, is concerned that this diluted version of the text may not effectively protect abortion rights as the original. While the article guarantees the freedom to have an abortion, it also allows lawmakers to decide the conditions under which this freedom can be exercised. According to Hennette-Vauchez, this power could be potentially abused in the future.

Additionally, the constitutional amendment itself will not solve France's increasing issue with abortion access, as stated by Hennette-Vauchez. "You can put it in the constitution," she said, but that's "not going to open up a service that actually does abortions … less than 120 km (75 miles) from where you live."

"It was a wake-up call for everyone," French Senator Mélanie Vogel, pictured, told CNN.

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The reduction in public health funding has resulted in the shutdown of numerous maternity clinics in France, creating challenges for women in accessing legal abortions, explained Durocher. Planning Familial, her organization, has supported multiple women who had to travel to other parts of the country to obtain abortions.

Furthermore, the closure of maternity clinics has restricted access to surgical abortions, which accounted for only 22% of abortions in France in 2022. Durocher argued that the prevalence of medication abortions highlights the lack of options in reproductive rights and care.

Despite the limited potential impact, all the women interviewed by CNN view constitutionalization as a significant step forward. Currently, only three constitutions globally mention abortion, all with the aim of prohibiting it, according to Hannette-Vauchez. "If our country becomes the first to acknowledge the right to abortion in the constitution," she said, "it prompts a crucial discussion about why reproductive rights have been suppressed in constitutions worldwide."

Vogel remains steadfast in her determination to advocate for abortion rights.