Poland Creates National Registry Of Pregnant Women

The Associated Press reports:

The government of Poland, where a near-total abortion ban is in place, faced accusations Monday of creating a “pregnancy register” as the country expands the amount of medical data being digitally saved on patients.

Women’s rights advocates and opposition politicians fear women face unprecedented surveillance given the conservative views of a ruling party that has already tightened what was one of Europe’s most restrictive abortion laws.

They fear the new data could be used by police and prosecutors against women whose pregnancies end, even in cases of miscarriage, or that women could be tracked by the state if they order abortion pills or travel abroad for an abortion.

Euronews reports:

Liberal MP Kamila Gasiuk-Pihowicz told reporters that the data list could “persecute and control Polish women.”

The government register was also denounced by Poland’s opposition leader and former EU Council President Donald Tusk. “Polish women need care, not control,” Tusk said during a press conference in Biestrzyki on Monday.

In recent months, at least two women have died in Polish hospitals after doctors delayed the removal of their foetus, even when it had been diagnosed with severe illness.

Poland is nearly 90% Roman Catholic.