ABORTION POLICY IN POSTCOMMUNIST EUROPE - THE CONFLICT IN POLAND

During 1989-93, in the midst of profound systemic changes, Poland expe rienced a divisive abortion debate. Although the issue of abortion was reexamined throughout East Central Europe, nowhere was it as fiercely contested as in Poland, where the Catholic Church spearheaded an inte nsive campaign to make abortion illegal. These actions assumed great s ignificance because abortion had become a key method of birth control due primarily to the failure of the state to adequately support family planning services. While this campaign furthered the Pope's goal of s etting a precedent for the former socialist countries of the region an d elsewhere, the dispute was also a critical test case for all partici pants, including women's and family planning groups. The article seeks to explain why one of the most liberal abortion statutes in the world was radically reversed and to assess the implications of these policy changes.