On this International Safe Abortion Day, the Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE) Network calls on governments and institutions to turn commitments into action so that all women and girls can access safe, affordable, and legal abortion without stigma, barriers, or fear.

Abortion is essential health care and a human right. Yet around 45% of abortions worldwide are still unsafe, a preventable driver of illness and death that falls hardest on those facing poverty, racism, disability, migration status, and other intersecting inequalities. Restrictive laws do not end abortions. They push people into unsafe situations and punish those seeking care.¹

Across Europe, 2025 brings both progress and unfinished work. In England and Wales, Parliament voted to decriminalise women who self-manage abortions, a long-overdue step that reduces the risk of criminal investigation for those seeking care.^{2 3} In France, the right to abortion is now protected in the constitution, a landmark that other countries should match with strong implementation.⁴ Ireland has enacted safe access zones around providers to protect patients and health workers from harassment.⁵

At the same time, millions across the globe – including in parts of Europe -still live under restrictive abortion laws, with access blocked by legal, financial, geographic, and cultural barriers.⁶ In Poland, despite UN findings in 2024 that its law causes grave human rights violations and 2025 reminders to act, meaningful reform remains outstanding.⁷

This year also marks a powerful public demand for change. On 1 September 2025, the European Citizens’ Initiative “My Voice, My Choice” was formally submitted to the European Commission with 1,124,513 validated signatures from 19 Member States, calling for EU-level support so women can access safe abortion care across borders.⁸

WAVE calls on European and national decision-makers to:

• Decriminalise abortion and remove punitive measures that target those seeking or providing care.⁹
• Guarantee timely, affordable access to comprehensive abortion care, including medication abortion and post-abortion care, within strong public health systems.¹⁰
• Secure safe access by implementing evidence-based measures such as clinic buffer zones and protections for providers and patients.¹¹
• Address intersectional barriers, ensuring access for migrants, undocumented women, those in rural areas, people with disabilities, and low-income communities. ¹²
• Respond to public will by engaging constructively with the “My Voice, My Choice” ECI and exploring EU-level mechanisms that ensure cross-border access to care.¹³
• Include free access to abortion care in the next Gender Equality Strategy under principle 2 of the Roadmap for Women’s Rights “The highest standards of health” to ensure all women and girls in the EU have equal access to this fundamental right.

Abortion rights are human rights. The time for action is now.

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1. World Health Organization, Abortion fact sheet. ↩︎
2. Reuters, UK Parliament votes to decriminalise women who self-manage abortions. ↩︎
3. Washington Post, U.K. Parliament votes to bar prosecution for abortions in England and Wales. 17 June 2025. ↩︎
4. Human Rights Watch, France protects abortion: guaranteed freedom in the constitution. ↩︎
5. TheJournal.ie, Ireland passes safe access zones law. ↩︎
6. Center for Reproductive Rights, World’s Abortion Laws map. ↩︎
7. Center for Reproductive Rights, Follow-up on Poland/CEDAW findings. ↩︎
8. European Commission, ECI portal on “My Voice, My Choice.” ↩︎
9. Reuters, UK Parliament votes to decriminalise women who self-manage abortions. ↩︎
10. World Health Organization, Abortion fact sheet. ↩︎
11. TheJournal.ie, Ireland passes safe access zones law. ↩︎
12. World Health Organization, Abortion fact sheet. ↩︎
13. European Commission, ECI portal on “My Voice, My Choice.” ↩︎

Photo by Manny Becerra on Unsplash