[The following article, signed Thalou, appeared in the May 2 issue of Rouge, the French Trotskyist weekly. The translation is by Intercontinental Press.]
The struggle for freedom of abortion has not ended in 1975. In fact, "International Women's Year" has witnessed a reaffirmation of women's struggle against their position in capitalist society.
In France, the mass mobilization organized by MLAC [Mouvement pour la Liberté de l'Avortement et de la Contraception— Movement for Freedom of Abortion and Contraception] has forced the government to retreat and grant a "liberal" law. But the problem is still far from resolved. An abortion costs 400 to 700 francs [1 franc=US$0.25]; abortions are permitted only during the first ten weeks of pregnancy; minors and immigrants are excluded under the new law; and the hospitals are not complying.
In Britain, the law was liberalized in 1967. But today it is being threatened by a reactionary wing of the bourgeoisie that wants to restrict abortion to the first ten weeks of pregnancy and to women who have lived in Britain for at least twenty weeks. The counteroffensive is being led by SPUC (Society for the Protection of Unborn Children) with the support of Catholic circles, and is able to draw 60,000 to 80,000 persons to its demonstrations. It is linked, moreover, to the fascist National Front. The crisis is made worse by a 5 percent cut in the budget for social services. The result: the closing down of hospitals, particularly those in which women were treated.
The women's movement responded quickly. The National Abortion Campaign was set up on the initiative of far-left organizations and Labour members of Parliament in disagreement with their party. The NAC is organizing a June 21 protest demonstration in London.
In the German Federal Republic, an abortion law was passed in the spring of 1974 after large mobilizations in 1971 and 1973. But a conservative group in parliament forced its suspension, and in March 1975 it was declared unconstitutional. Throughout Germany the movements again took up the fight and are moving to unify following the April 19-20 meeting.*
In Switzerland, on the question of abortion, there is little that could be called liberal in the law. A petition with 50,000 signatures was filed in December 1971 demanding a referendum on the legalization of abortion. But it did not come to grips with either the question of a woman's right to choose or the injustice of the law. The federal draft legislation in fact reverts to leaving the decision to the doctors alone. At present the women's liberation groups are waging an educational campaign around the themes of a woman's right to choose, reimbursement by medical insurance, and equal rights for immigrant workers.
In Italy, the referendum on divorce in May 1974 gave rise to a new awareness of the oppression of women, along with a loosening of the grip of the Catholic church. A recent poll showed that 75 percent of Italian women favor the legalization of abortion. The PCI [Partito Comunista Italiano-Italian Communist party], however, does not agree with reimbursement and even proposes penal sanctions in cases in which a woman places herself "outside the law." The Christian Democrats restricted themselves to favoring abortion in cases of rape, incest, and when the life of the woman is threatened. The PSI [Partito Socialista Italiano-Italian Socialist party] added to this list abortions for therapeutic reasons or social considerations.
On the other hand, the MLD [Movimento di Liberazione della Donna-Women's Liberation Movement] and the far left are organizing against the repressive law, sometimes drawing in the Radical party and the PSI. Demonstrations have been held against the police raid on the Radical party clinic in Florence. United abortion committees are now being set up in several northern towns. If they can be coordinated, it would be possible to mount a mass campaign on a countrywide scale.
In the Netherlands, the law is repressive (similar to the law of 1920). But abortion is tolerated, which has permitted the establishment of a number of private clinics that perform abortions on an assembly-line basis (particularly for foreigners) and thus make enormous profits.
In Belgium and in Luxembourg, repressive laws have forced women wanting abortions to either go abroad or obtain illegal abortions. In 1972, Doctor Peers of Belgium, who performed inexpensive abortions, was prosecuted. A defense campaign was carried out at the time, mainly by the Communist party.
In Spain, the fascist legal code outlaws abortion. The possibilities for mass struggle on this issue are limited, given the need to work under clandestine conditions.
In Portugal, the fascist anti-abortion laws have not been repealed. MLAC sent a team in April to begin training militants in the Karman method at the public hospital in Lisbon. The struggle is still in its early stages. It is being led by the women's movement and by a movement calling for free abortion on demand that has just been set up.
The April 19-20 meeting points to the possibility of campaigns on a Europewide scale. Already its participants are engaged in building the following:
• Support for the June 21 demonstration in Britain.
• A week of meetings in Portugal at the end of July, leading to larger actions.
• A mass meeting on a Europewide scale in Milan this autumn.
Notes
* An international gathering in Paris that voted unanimously to organize picket lines on June 21 at British embassies in solidarity with the demonstration called by the National Abortion Campaign in Britain. — IP