Manifa marched through the streets of Szczecin on 11 March 2023
On 11 March, under the slogan ‘Motherhood is a choice’, the Manifa marched through the streets of Szczecin, after a break of almost 10 years. It was an expression of opposition to the violation of women’s rights by those in power in Poland.
This country has the most restrictive abortion ban in Europe, which often ends in a woman’s death. The demonstrators expressed their demands for funding for in vitro methods, the legalisation of monogamous couples, closing the wage gap for women, not forcing women into motherhood and respect.
Women’s right to self-determination over their bodies and lives is notoriously restricted and violated in Poland. On 22 October 2020, the right to abortion was drastically tightened, resulting in an avalanche of strikes and demonstrations. Under the current law, one of the grounds for abortion is lethal defects of the fetus.
In practice, however, many women were refused to terminate their pregnancies for this reason. Some died, others had an abortion outside Poland. At the same time, a women’s support network has developed for women who do not want or cannot have children - the Abortion Dream Team, Abortion Without Borders, etc.
Polish women are fighters, and we support them in this!
Visit IWW Poland Section HERE
