[JURIST] Thousands of Polish citizens marched in Warsaw on Wednesday in support of a proposed constitutional amendment to enact a complete ban on abortion. The opposition Civic Platform party [party website] is expected to block passage of the amendment when it comes to a vote in April. Poland's current 1993 abortion law [CRR backgrounder, PDF] is considered among the strictest in Europe, allowing abortions only if the pregnancy threatens the life or health of the mother; if a fetus has a potentially life-threatening condition; or if the pregnancy is the product of a crime, which is only permitted during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. A two-thirds majority is needed to amend the Polish constitution [text]. AP has more.

Last year, a Polish woman challenged the abortion law [JURIST report] before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) as violating her privacy rights under the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms [text]. The ECHR decided in her favor [BBC report] last week, but the ruling will not affect the Polish law.