ALBAWABA - In a historic joint session of parliament at the Palace of Versailles on Monday, French lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a bill that will enshrine a woman’s right to an abortion in the French Constitution.
The move comes amid a backdrop of global concern over the erosion of abortion rights, particularly following recent court rulings in the United States.
The bill passed with an emphatic 780-72 vote, prompting jubilant scenes of celebration across France. Nearly the entire joint session stood in a long-standing ovation as the measure was approved.
The amendment to Article 34 of the French Constitution specifically guarantees a woman’s right to an abortion. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, addressing the 925 lawmakers gathered, called on France to lead in women’s rights and set an example for the world.
“We have a moral debt to women,” Attal declared, paying tribute to Simone Veil, a prominent legislator and key feminist who championed the decriminalization of abortion in France in 1975. “We have a chance to change history,” he added, urging the lawmakers to make Veil proud.
Both houses of parliament, the National Assembly and the Senate, had previously adopted the bill. The Senate's approval on Wednesday cleared a crucial hurdle for the legislation, which President Emmanuel Macron's government has vowed will make “a woman’s right to have an abortion irreversible.”
