Almost half a million signatures have been gathered by pro-life supporters in Poland to back a proposed ban on abortion.
Current Polish law allows for abortion to take place in pregnancies that result from rape or incest, pose a health risk to the mother, or when the foetus is severely deformed.
The proposed law would allow abortions only when necessary to save the mother’s life.
Barbarous
The signatures were delivered to the Lower House of Parliament in 35 boxes by a large group of activists organised by the Right to Life Foundation.
Lawyer, Jerzy Kwaśniewski was one of the authors of the proposed Bill and called for the country to amend its current laws.
He added: “We want to change the law and those barbarous procedures that do not belong in the 21st century.
Help
“We want Poland to join the group of two-thirds of the world’s countries which protect the unborn better than us.”
The legal team involved in the proposed Bill called for Polish abortion law to be replaced with a system of support that would provide protection for every child.
They said help should be offered, “especially in the situation where the unborn child is sick, handicapped or was conceived in rape”.
Debate
The group are also seeking to make palliative care for babies publicly funded.
According to Polish law, any citizens Bill must receive more than 100,000 signatures before being debated in parliament.