Monica Costa Riba, Amnesty International’s Women’s Rights Senior Campaigner, condemned on Thursday the verdict in the case of Justyna Vydrinska, a human rights activist convicted of helping a woman access safe abortion, stating that authorities should overturn the decision and halt the prosecution of legitimate activists.

Justyna Wydrzyńska, one of the founders of the civil society organization Abortion Dream Team, helped a pregnant woman access abortion pills in 2020. The woman said she was suffering from domestic violence and initially tried to get an abortion at a clinic abroad, but her husband prevented her from doing so, and then trapped at home.

Justyna was charged with “helping with an abortion” and “possession of medicines without authorization for the purpose of introducing them into the market” in 2021 and was convicted of aiding an abortion and was sentenced to eight months of community service later in 2023. The Court of Appeals announced Thursday that a verdict will be handed down on February 13.

According to OKO.press Justyna Wydrzyńska said during the last hearing, that help, provided to another person who needs it, should never be a crime whether the help is giving someone a cup of soup, a warm jacket, or providing abortion pills.

Monica Costa Riba said, “Justyna Wydrzyńska is thought to be the first human rights activist in Europe to be prosecuted for providing abortion pills. She must be the last.”

Poland is known for having the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe. Current legislation allows termination of pregnancy only when it represents a threat to the life or health of the pregnant person and when pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. At the same time, self-abortion or possession of medication for that purpose is not a criminal offense, however, any individual or health worker, who helps a pregnant woman obtain an abortion outside the two legally sanctioned circumstances, risks facing imprisonment for up to three years.

International human rights organizations previously heavily criticized Polish anti-abortion policies. For instance, last year’s report by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), showed the devastating effects of this law on women’s health in Poland, stating that it “inflicts severe physical and mental suffering on women, that may be so severe as to amount to “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.”, thus violating human rights.