Women's right to choose
BELGIUM the organisation, in the decision making structures of the organisation. the participation of Cape trade unions in the Disorderly last year, seemed to be an unsatisfactory experience, not only for the after a long series of meetings. To
ON OCTOBER 4, 51 women and men will face trial in Ghent, Belgium, what extent do you think for the 'crime' of giving, procuring or having an abortion. The trial discouraged workers and trade unions the Western Cape from particifollows a police raid of a clinic in the town, in the Flemish-speaking which is seen pating in the UDF, part of the country and is part and parcel of a renewed attack on as some bigger form of the DBAC? (2)
In the initial stages of the a woman's right to choose. We spoke to Marijke Colle, one of those formation of the UDF, our experience accused and a long time fighter for abortion rights. Marijke is a of the DBAC definitely did influence member of the Belgian Socialist Workers Party (POS/SAP), Belgian our feelings about participation in section of the Fourth International, who are mounting a campaign
The experiences
DBAC were uniformly negative, in the in defence of those accused and in defence of women's right to sense that we found ourselves in the extraordinary squabbles.
Sometimes they seemed to be squabbles based on straight power plays, between the two factions community organisation in Cape Town.
of that was nothing
The upshot
Koorhof Bills. I recall a laughable situation on one occasion - I myself wasn't present there, but our representatives reported - where in the same that the Koorhof Bills were withdrawn, the DBAC met. They sat through an entire three or four hour the Koorhof Bills. The DBAC seemed to be set up for some other purpose altogether. The purpose seemd to me to be for one grouping in the community to achieve domination over another grouping in the community.
colour our participation in the
UDF at first, but it doesn't anymore.
We, like I imagine other groups who were equally disappointed with their experience of the DBAC, have shaken off the ill effect of that experience. O
2.
The DBAC was set up before
UDF the proposed constithe to oppose tutional reforms.
It brought together several different organisations including the
Very big differences quickly, trade unions.
opened on the functioning, the system of the different representation of organisations and what component on attitude to take to the different bills (see
February
International Viewpoint No
46,
13, 1984).
In the end there was a split with one side su baequently launching the UDF.
The other organisations involved, some in the National Forum, of whom are now this
They thought criticised approach.
it displayed sectarianism and opportunism the vote for Indians and on the issue of
Coloureds.
debates within the DBAC some
In the currents had displayed a certain reluctance in calling for a boycott of the indian and
Coloured referendum proposed by
Botha.
On their side the unions, alienated this experience, found further reason not the
UDF.
[Note affiliate
International Viewpoint')
26 abortion. legal situation in Belgium with regards to women's right to abortion?
Answer. Abortion is illegal according to a law dating from 1867. It is seen as a crime against the family and the moral order so it is not, characterised as and it is not part of the penal code. A doctor can be sentenced to from ten imprisonment an abortion. A woman who procures herself an abortion or anyone who helps her can be sentenced to five to ten years. So technically if you give someone an address where they can get an abortion you could be sentenced to ten years.
So, in Belgium abortion is a very serious crime. It should come to a high court with a jury but it never does because this would give it too much publicity.
What has been the response Well, inspite of this law, in the abortion movement started clinics - first in Brussels and in the French speaking part, then in the Flemish part where there is only one clinic. These clinics have a legal status as contraception clinics abortions. In three years the justice system did not react to this activity. That gave some sections of the movement the illusion that it wasn't necessary to fight for against this — we said that the clinics are important, but we must continue less in the last four years we haven't
Many big mass or campaigns for two reasons.
### Firstly, previous campaigns not achieved a great deal because half the working class in Belgium is organised in the Christian union which is linked to the Christian Democratic Party - the CVP/PSC. They used Catholic ideology to stop abortion. So we do not have even a potential parlabortion. Also the bourgeois Liberal Party - the PVV/PRL changed its attitude. It used to be anti the Church (although not for a woman's right to choose) and now it is shedding its liberal image - it is more like the Tory Party in Britain. Recently for example, the president of the Flemish Liberal Party said that accept any extremist proposals on abortion. They are more and more opposed to a new law despite the fact that their own liberal women are more and more in favour. Basically the bourgeois parties right which self determination.
So that was the first problem. Secondly, in the last five years there have been many attacks on women as attacks in social security, cuts in unemployment benefits, high unemployment of women etc.
succeeded in building a coalition of the womens unions but the condition was that we International Viewpoint 30 September 1985
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on trial
because now we see it is possible to with Catholic women all sorts of issues but also, of course
What is the background to the recent attacks? start prosecutions because it was high time that the law was applied. slowly, the repression began to be stepped up mainly against the honital because he kerable othe prosecutions came slowly and were fairly modest. It was very difficult to mobilise one doctor in University Hospital was prosecuted. He has virtually been doing abortion demand. His defence more and more political. It started pointing out the dangers of back-street abortion and then declared in favour of a woman's right to choose. He was less vulnerable because he is a doctor. This was very good for the pro-choice and it helped other doctors not to be
This meant that the justice had to they raided the Ghent clinic. They seized all the material and every bit of paper (luckily the files of patients were not there ) and the accounts books. There were
International Viewpoint 30 September 1985
Marijke Colle (DR) patients resting after an abortion and together with the doctor who was there and two other women they were taken away for interrogation.
Following this, the clinic immediately started working again with new investigation started and one hundred people were interrogated. investigation was conducted by the Special Investigation Branch of the police force and was led by a woman!
As a result 51 people received a letter from the investigation office in which they were ordered to appear before the Chamber of Justice to determine whether or not they would correctional court. The charge was abortion. The 51 were made up of 14 doctors; 16 women who had been working with the clinic - I am one of those, and 21 patients who happen to have paid suspected of having had an abortion. There is no actual proof that abortions were carried out. The clinic is, in fact a completely legal organisation, registed for contraception.
How prepared ment then to respond to this attack?
Luckily we had been discussing just before the attack the need for a more public campaign which we had to launch in September 1985 — the anniversary for the launch of the centre. We had also decided on an emergency plan to get big press coverage if something happened.
So we were able to organise a press conference and to reach every patient and mobilise supporters for June 14 -the day we had to appear in court. On the day 200 people, mostly women turned up and they got the decision put off until October 4. When decision was announced on television. Now we are going to build a large campaign against this -Abortion has become one of the key political issues movement and in the run-up to the election campaign. The election is on October 13 and the POS/SAP intend making this one of the major issues.
One important question here is the attitude of the Socialist Party. In theory they are in favour make it a central issue when discusprogramme for to say that the Social Democrats must refuse to govern in a coalition. Why? Because if they participated in such a government they would stop fighting for, things, abortion rights. Instead they should be building, together with the women's movement and the trade unions, a mass mobilisation for the right to choose. that the trade unions have to become independent of the CVP/PSC order to be able to fight in interests of the working class that they need their own worker party to do this (See Internationa Viewpoint No 79, July 1, 1985 This is very practical because recent there have been several developments within the Christian trade in this direction. Through the wome against the crisis group we have beel working in this direction with women from the Catholic trade unions.
In Wallonia there is now the begin. nings of a political party that emerged from the Christian Workers movement and is independent from the bourgeois parties. It is interesting that immediately took a position in favour of a woman's right to choose.
What do you want people to do to support you?
They should send solidarity telegrams and messages to the Abortus Committee P/A Guinardstraat 3, 9000 and also to the POS SAP at 29 Rue Plantin, 1070 Brussels. would like our case to be publicised trade union, labour movement internationally The attack on abortion rights is being stepped up on an international