France’s National Assembly Advances Bill to Enshrine Women’s Abortion Rights in Constitution

France’s National Assembly is in the process of considering a significant bill aiming to incorporate a woman’s right to abortion into the French Constitution. Proposed by President Emmanuel Macron’s government, the amendment seeks to add language to Article 34 of the constitution, emphasizing that “the law determines the conditions by which is exercised the freedom of women to have recourse to an abortion, which is guaranteed.”

This constitutional change follows concerns over abortion rights, particularly after a rollback in the United States. While the majority of the National Assembly is expected to support the proposal, uncertainties arise in the conservative-majority Senate, potentially impacting the bill’s passage. The move to fortify abortion rights in the constitution reflects a response to global challenges to women’s reproductive freedoms, as seen in recent events in the United States and Poland.