Historic Sealing Ceremony in Paris: the Freedom to Abort Enters the French Constitution
GHRTV
08-03-2024
Anne-Marie Leal
Women’s Rights Researcher,
Global Human Rights Defence.
"We women have come a long way", once remarked Simone Veil, the pioneer of the decriminalisation of abortion in France. As cries of joy echo in the streets of the French capital, France makes history by enshrining the freedom to abortion in its Constitution. French pride is on everyone's lips, while journalists portray the event as a message sent to the world [1].
On March 4th, the French Parliament overwhelmingly voted to integrate the freedom to abortion into the French Constitution, with 780 votes in favour of this unprecedented decision of constitutionality, prompting a standing ovation rarely seen in the French Hemicycle. While the media report on the 18-month-long legislative process, the idea of constitutionalising the freedom to abortion is not solely circumstantial to the setbacks in Poland and the United States. France, ahead of its time, had been mobilising for several years to incorporate abortion into the French legislative framework. From now on, Article 34 of the Constitution includes a paragraph written as follows: “The law determines the conditions under which the freedom of women to voluntarily terminate a pregnancy, which is guaranteed” [2].
The symbolism of such an act is emphasised by the French Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal who stated : “We're sending a message to all women: your body belongs to you and no one can decide for you”. Constitutionalisation serves as an emblem of the French commitment to the feminist movement and tends to protect a right that, guaranteed by a simple law, used to be at the mercy of lawmakers [3].
On this day dedicated to women's rights, the traditional French sealing ceremony paid tribute to the great French feminist figures who contributed to the revision of the Constitution, including Gisèle Halimi, Joséphine Baker, Louise Michel, Simone de Beauvoir, and Simone Veil [4]. During the sealing ceremony, Emmanuel Macron confirmed his intention to include the freedom to abortion in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union [5].
While the French constitutionalisation of the freedom to have an abortion is a significant milestone in women's fight for their rights, there are still many battles left to fight. The wording chosen by Parliament remains highly restrictive, granting a simple freedom to undergo an abortion, whose conditions still depend on Parliament’s choices, and solely granted to women, rather than establishing an untouchable universal human right. However, this inspiring vote could be the first of a wave of undertakings in favour of the right to abortion. In the meantime, let us congratulate France for its encouraging forward-thinking.
Sources and further readings :
[1] Le Figaro (2024, March 4), “Un message de la France pour le monde” : la presse internationale salue la constitutionnalisation de l’IVG”
Consulted on March 8, 2024 and Retrieved from
[2]Le Monde (2024, March 4) “France, first to protect abortion in the Constitution, sends message to 'women of the world’ ”.
Consulted on March 8, 2024 and Retrieved from
[3] BBC News (2024, March 5), “France makes abortion a constitutional right”
Consulted on March 8, 2024 and Retrieved from
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68471568
[4] TFI Info (2024, March 8), “L'IVG dans la Constitution : revoyez les moments forts de cette journée historique”
Consulted on March 8, 2024 and retrieved from
[5] Le Monde (2024, March 8) “Macron says he wants abortion added to EU rights charter”
Consulted on March 8, 2024 and Retrieved from
