Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: TH
Context: France has become the only country to explicitly guarantee abortion as a constitutional right.
- The bill enshrines a woman’s right to voluntarily terminate a pregnancy in France’s constitution.
- The historic move follows the Dobbs ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 and aligns with France’s commitment to women’s rights.
- The amendment pays tribute to Simone Veil, who championed the bill decriminalizing abortion in France in 1975.
- The amendment process is rare in France, with the Constitution being amended only 17 times since its enactment in 1958.
Abortion is a medical procedure that terminates a pregnancy, resulting in the removal of the foetus or embryo from the uterus, either surgically or medically.
