59 years ago, the first clandestine Family Planning opened in Grenoble to inform women and allow them to have an abortion without putting their lives in danger.
- On June 10, 1961, the first illegal Family Planning opened to fight against clandestine abortions.
- Today, between 215,000 and 230,000 abortions are performed each year in France
- Due to confinement, access to abortion has, once again in history, been weakened
It was 59 years ago. The first Family Planning opened on June 10, 1961 in Grenoble, clandestinely. That day, the waiting room is crowded. The doctors at the initiative of this new and very controversial medical service, inform women about the means of contraception (still prohibited in France), discreetly provide them with spermicidal creams, diaphragms and try to fight against clandestine abortions.
The “Angel Makers”
It is estimated that 500,000 clandestine abortions took place each year at the beginning of the XXand century, leading to the death of around 300 women a year. At the time, those who wanted to terminate their pregnancy appealed to specialized women nicknamed “the angel makers”, among whom were the infamous “knitters”, who used their knitting needles to pierce the pocket of water, open the cervix and cause a miscarriage. These “angel makers” resorted to other methods, such as virulent massages or injections of soapy water into the uterus, which can cause serious lesions and/or infections.
In 1967, six years after the opening of the first family planning, the law finally authorizes contraception. However, it will be necessary to wait for the intervention of Simone Veil, then Minister of Health, under the chairmanship of Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, so that the law of definitively decriminalizes voluntary termination of pregnancy (IVG).
Access to abortion weakened during confinement
Today, although the subject is still debated, between 215,000 and 230,000 abortions are performed each year in France, but once again, access to abortion is weakened. If Marlène Schiappa, Secretary of State for Gender Equality, had assured that the right to abortion would be maintained during confinement, many women found the door closed, ill-informed of the new family planning provisions, distraught, and sometimes forced to travel long distances to have an abortion.
“With the confinement, some women were not sure if they were allowed to go out to buy a pregnancy test. Others face ultrasound centers that do not consider abortion to be a priority treatment, or simply too long delays in obtaining an appointment”explained to Release Caroline Rebhi, co-president of Family Planning.
“Our fears are that women will have appointments postponed and that, as a result, they exceed the French deadline, which is 14 weeks (of amenorrhea)”specified for her part Sarah Durocher, co-president of Family Planning at the microphone of franceinfo April 2nd. At the same period, the High Authority for Health (HAS) had agreed to extend the legal deadline for carrying out a medical abortion at home until the seventh week of pregnancy (or nine weeks of amenorrhea) due to the exceptional circumstances facing the country.
In a letter sent on April 23 to several associations and parliamentarians, the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, had indicated that the legal period of 12 weeks of pregnancy to perform a surgical abortion could be exceptionally exceeded, provided that the doctors invoke the reason for “psychosocial distress”.
Nevertheless, “over the past fortnight, via our toll-free number, we have received around fifty calls from women forced to go abroad for an abortion, because of exceeding the legal deadline in France, compared to 19 at the same time last yearlamented Caroline Rebhi. However, moving around leads to fears of contracting the virus, and requires obtaining a certificate from a doctor justifying urgent care abroad in order to be able to cross the border. Some were blocked at the border. And for undocumented immigrants or minors, it’s almost mission impossible.”
The temporary extension period rejected
The fact that the right to abortion is so weakened considerably affects women’s freedom, psychological well-being and health. This is why the associations have called for the maximum legal period of 12 weeks of pregnancy to perform a surgical abortion to be increased to 14 weeks.
However, at the end of May, the Senate rejected two amendments intended to adjust access to abortion carried by the socialist senator from Oise, Laurence Rossignol, which provided in particular for the temporary extension of the legal deadline for performing an abortion to fourteen weeks”for the duration of the state of health emergency, and up to three months after its end”Insofar as “the period of confinement accompanied by the mobilization of all the forces of hospital staff in the care of Covid patients has jeopardized the maintenance of access to voluntary termination of pregnancy.”
.
