PARIS — France on Friday became the first country in the world to enshrine a guaranteed right to abortion into its constitution on International Women's Day, in a strong message of support for women around the world.
A woman from Argentina, a couple from Miami and a man from the Czech Republic gathered on the polished cobblestones of Paris' Place Vendôme to watch the historic event unfold in an outdoor public ceremony. Women in the crowd recalled their lifelong fight for abortion and reproductive rights.
Abortion is a highly divisive issue in the United States, but it is legal in most of Europe and overwhelmingly popular in France, where it is seen as a public health issue rather than politics. French parliamentarians approved constitutional amendments on Monday by a vote of 780 to 72, with support from many far-right MPs.
The event in Paris marked a key moment on a day focused on advancing women's rights worldwide. Marches, protests and meetings have been held in places from Jakarta, Indonesia to Mexico City and beyond.
Cheers erupted in the square as France's justice minister sealed the amendments to the French constitution using a 19th-century printing press. This ensures that “a woman's freedom to choose abortion is guaranteed.”
President Emmanuel Macron said that “for too long, women's destinies have been sealed by others” and Friday's ceremony marked “a long struggle for freedom” for women to choose what to do with their bodies. He said that it is the culmination of
France's constitutional reforms have been welcomed by women's rights groups around the world, including in regions where women struggle to access contraception and maternal health care. Macron said the move was prompted by a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling revoking long-held abortion rights.
Mr Macron called on other countries to follow suit and proposed enshrining the right to abortion in the European Union Charter, drawing cheers from crowds in Paris. However, such a move is likely to meet fierce resistance from EU member states, such as Poland, which have strict restrictions on abortion.
Macron's critics questioned why he pushed for the measure in a country where women face so many other problems, even though there is no clear threat to abortion rights. .
While some French women see the measure as a major victory, others say that in reality, not all French women have access to abortion.
Alia Meloni, 32, called the incident “a smokescreen.”
“The government is destroying our health system and many family planning clinics are closed,” she said at the annual Feminist Night March in Paris on the eve of International Women's Day. Stated.
Still, for people like Renice Marquis, a 44-year-old communications director, it was “a huge milestone for women's rights.”
“We are sending a message to the world,” she said.
The proportion of women murdered by their partners remains high in France, and challenges remain in prosecuting sexual abuse of women by powerful celebrities and other men. French women, especially non-white women, also have lower wages and pensions.
Macron's government said the abortion reform was important to avoid a U.S.-like scenario for French women as far-right groups grow in power and seek to turn back the clock on freedoms across Europe.
Starting in 1810, Justice Minister Eric Dupont Moretti used a 100-kilogram (220-pound) printing press to print amendments into the 1958 French Constitution.
France is following in the footsteps of the former Yugoslavia, whose 1974 constitution included the phrase “a person is free to decide whether or not to have children.” Yugoslavia's successor states left similar language in their constitutions, but without explicitly guaranteeing the right to abortion.
Not everyone saw the day as a celebration, as angry protest marches took place in many countries.
The president of the Danish Trade Union Confederation, which has 1.3 million members, was outraged by the different treatment of women and men in some areas.
Morten Skov Christensen said: “Unfortunately, exorbitant pay disparities, occupations dominated by one gender, gender-segregated labor markets, incidents of harassment that primarily affect women, and a wide range of other equality issues still exist.'' “
Other events on Friday:
In Ireland, voters are deciding whether to amend the constitution to remove clauses regarding women's domestic duties and expand the definition of family.
Thousands of people marched in Rome to protest gender-based violence in Italy, where the country's first female prime minister is in power. The issue came to the fore in the wake of a particularly gruesome murder of a young woman last November, which Italian President Sergio Mattarella said Friday had “shrouded all of Italy in fear and pain.” said. Data shows that of the 120 women murdered in Italy last year, more than half were killed by a current or former partner.
At a street rally in Seoul, participants focused on next month's South Korean parliamentary elections and expressed hope that political parties will prioritize gender equality.
In Russia, where the United Nations says human rights have deteriorated since the military's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin is waiting at home for Russian women fighting in the war and their loved ones who have been sent troops. I paid my respects to the women who are there.
Afghan women have staged an unprecedented protest against the Taliban's strict regulations. The country's rulers prohibited girls and women from education beyond the sixth grade and from most jobs. Women are also prohibited from entering public places such as parks. In Kabul, a group of women gathered indoors, holding placards and covering their faces, chanting “No to gender apartheid” and “Afghanistan is hell for women.”
Protesters in Turkey sought to call attention to violence against women.
Demonstrators in Indonesia called for the adoption of the International Labor Organization's Convention on Gender Equality and the Elimination of Violence and Harassment at the Workplace. Thai labor rights groups march to Government House to petition for better working conditions Activists marching against violence in Philippine capital are stopped by police near the presidential palace, where a brief scuffle breaks out did.
The Indian government has cut the price of cooking gas cylinders by 100 rupees ($1.20), with Prime Minister Narendra Modi posting on social media that the move is “in line with our country's commitment to empowering women.” did.
More than 230 million women and girls worldwide have undergone female genital mutilation, the United Nations children's agency said in a report released on International Women's Day. Over the past eight years, that number has increased by 30 million.
“We are also seeing a worrying trend where more girls are undergoing the practice at a younger age, many before their fifth birthday, which further reduces the scope for intervention.” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.
Officially recognized by the United Nations in 1977, International Women's Day is a public holiday in about 20 countries, including Russia, Ukraine, and Afghanistan.
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Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.