French lawmakers advance bill to enshrine abortion in constitution

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Lawmakers gather at the National Assembly, Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024 in Paris. The Associated Press/Photo by Michel Euler

French lawmakers advance bill to enshrine abortion in constitution

The French National Assembly on Tuesday voted to approve a bill that would amend Article 34 of the constitution to grant women a right to abortion. French President Emmanuel Macron, in an October post on X, promised to enshrine abortion access in the constitution. The bill will move on to the French Senate and requires either a referendum or a three-fifths majority in a joint session of parliament to be approved. The vote came days after the annual Paris March for Life.

What are France’s current abortion laws? France decriminalized abortion in 1975, and politicians in 2022 loosened restrictions around abortion to only protect unborn babies after 14 weeks of pregnancy, up from the previous 12 weeks. At least 17,000 more babies died by abortion in France in 2022 than in 2021, according to data from the French Department of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics.

Dig deeper: Read Chiara Lamberti’s report in WORLD Magazine about why having children in Italy is countercultural.

Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.