Protest following the decision of the Constitutional Tribunal. Nowogrodzka is surrounded by a police cordon

About a thousand people appeared in front of the Constitutional Court to protest against Thursday’s judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal, which ruled that abortion due to a severe fetal defect was unconstitutional. Before 9 pm, the participants of the demonstration decided to go to Nowogrodzka Street, where the headquarters of Law and Justice is located. The police have closed the street, no one is allowed in front of the ruling party’s headquarters.

On Thursday, the Constitutional Court ruled that the provision allowing abortion in the event of a high probability of severe and irreversible impairment of the fetus or an incurable disease that threatens its life is inconsistent with the constitution. The justification indicated that human life is a value at every stage of development and that as a value derived from constitutional provisions, it should be protected by the legislator.

A dozen or so people gathered in front of the seat of the Constitutional Tribunal before 7 p.m. Already after 19 were more there. The participants of the demonstration protest against the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal on Thursday.

They have banners and cards with the slogans: “The law is to protect us”, “You have blood on your togas”, or “Understand the right hand: this is my uterus” and lit candles. They also painted an inscription on the pavement: “You have blood on your hands”.

From time to time they also shout: “Solidarity is our weapon” or “Shame”. There are many police cars on site.

The protesters also have candles with them. “Because this is a funeral for women’s rights,” they explained to the RMF FM reporter.

Before 9 pm, the protesters decided to go to the headquarters of the Law and Justice party to Nowogrodzka Street. The police have closed the street, no one is allowed in front of the PiS headquarters.

I believe that I have to be here, although I do not want to be here, because due to the epidemiological situation, I would rather be at home – one of the participants of the protest told the RMF FM reporter Paweł Balinowski.

The protest is growing all the time, although the police remind that Warsaw is in the red zone and that gatherings are forbidden.

As he informed at 22 Paweł Balinowski, several hundred protesters at Nowogrodzka Street did not reach the PiS headquarters. It is surrounded by a police cordon. The crowd stopped several dozen meters in front of the building. Police are calling for them to disperse. “In the event of non-compliance with the orders issued by the police, the means of direct coercion provided for by the law will be used” – you hear from the police megaphones.

The protesters themselves are not going to diverge. Many of them have flags, black umbrellas and candles in their hands.

The judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal was passed in full bench. Dissenting opinions were submitted by judges Piotr Pszczółkowski and Leon Kieres.

The Act on family planning, protection of the human fetus and conditions for termination of pregnancy, in force since 1993, allows for abortion in three cases. One of them is the high probability of severe and irreversible impairment of the fetus or an incurable life-threatening disease; the others are situations where the pregnancy poses a threat to the life or health of the woman or when the pregnancy resulted from a prohibited act.

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