美国国家公共电台 NPR--Poland's abortion-rights activists say they can teach Americans about loopholes

Poland's abortion²-rights activists³ say they can teach Americans about loopholes

Transcript⁴

As Americans wait for a Supreme⁵ Court decision on a case that could overturn the 1973 decision that legalized abortion in the U.S., other countries already provide a snapshot of what that's like.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

In 1973, the Supreme Court's Roe⁶ v. Wade⁷ decision legalized abortion across the United States. Now, nearly 50 years later, it could overturn that decision this month. Abortion activists are concerned about what that means going forward. But could other countries already be providing a snapshot? NPR's Deb Amos reports from Warsaw, Poland, which has the toughest restrictions⁸ on abortion in Europe. And a quick warning, there is a brief discussion of rape⁹ in this story.

(SOUNDBITE OF PHONE RINGING)

ANTONINA LEWANDOWSKA: Oh, sorry. That's probably an abortion intervention¹⁰.

(SOUNDBITE OF PHONE RINGING)

LEWANDOWSKA: (Non-English language spoken).

DEBORAH AMOS, BYLINE¹¹: In Poland, abortions¹² are almost entirely¹³ illegal. But there are still legal ways to help women who call this hotline, says Antonina Lewandowska. She's with FEDERA, Poland's oldest family planning and pro-choice organization. She sympathizes with Americans who fear the worst when the U.S. Supreme Court rules on abortion. Poland had the toughest restrictions in Europe. And last year, Poland's constitutional court tightened¹⁴ the ban even more.

LEWANDOWSKA: You can look at us as a warning. Or you can look at us as...

AMOS: She eventually settles on Poland is a guide because activists here have already found loopholes in the government ban.

LEWANDOWSKA: There is a saying in Polish - if I cannot get through the door, I will get in through the window. And that's what we are doing.

AMOS: Lewandowska can legally direct women to websites listing clinics in countries where abortion is legal. She can point out websites that offer abortion pills from the Netherlands, delivery within 24 hours. Then she knows the links to private groups who can pay when a woman cannot. All this is backed by a coalition¹⁵ of activists across Europe.

(SOUNDBITE OF PHONE RINGING)

LEWANDOWSKA: That's a day at work here.

AMOS: There was a day when Poland was the destination for abortions, legal through the 1980s under a communist government.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED CHOIR¹⁶: (Singing in non-English language).

AMOS: The change came in 1989 with the end of one-party rule and the first democratic elections. The Catholic Church, that had led the fight against communism, pushed for an abortion ban. The parliament obliged. In 1993, the law had broad support. There were three exceptions - when a woman's life is at risk, the pregnancy¹⁷ results from rape or incest or the fetus¹⁸ is damaged. And that by far was the majority of legal terminations.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED CHOIR: (Singing) Amen.

AMOS: Over time, the Catholic Church has chipped away at the exceptions and successfully lobbied the Polish government to create other laws protecting, as church officials say, the sanctity of life.

RAFAL DOROSINSKI: We are glad that so far we are winning and that most of the society is on our side.

AMOS: That's Rafal Dorosinski, a lawyer and an advocate for Ordo Iuris. In addition to the abortion ban, this conservative catholic group pushed to end government support for in vitro fertilization, which the church considers a sin. And last year, Ordo Iuris applauded when the government decreed that a woman could no longer have a legal abortion when her fetus is damaged, even if there are life-threatening abnormalities.

(SOUNDBITE OF PROTEST)

AMOS: Last year, as protests erupted across the country - the largest in 30 years - the latest constraint¹⁹ changed the abortion debate. Surveys showed a majority of Poles wanted more reproductive rights. And the culture war heated up again this year when Poland became a destination for Ukrainian war refugees, including rape survivors²⁰, says Dorosinski.

DOROSINSKI: We should do everything we can to help those who suffered during the war. But let's not confuse the terms. We shouldn't consider killing²¹ unborn children as a kind of help. Killing a baby is killing a baby. It's not giving help to anybody.

AMOS: Hello.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Hello.

RAFAL KUZLIK: Nice to meet you.

AMOS: You're the doctor?

KUZLIK: Yes, I am.

AMOS: That's Rafal Kuzlik, a gynecologist, an obstetrician who treats Ukrainian rape survivors. He dismisses the charge that Ukrainian women came to Poland for abortions. It's legal in Ukraine.

KUZLIK: They're taking care of it in Ukraine. And there is no problem for them. We are not expecting pregnant women for helping²² them with abortion.

AMOS: It's Polish patients who are desperate for help now that the last significant exception, fetal abnormalities, has been banned. Kuzlik says the ban created a climate of fear, doctors afraid to abort¹ a fetus with a heartbeat who won't live after birth, risking the mother's life. There are two highly publicized deaths of pregnant women that underline the unintended consequences of what he says is a harsh new ban.

KUZLIK: If you believe in God - I do. But if you believe in God, you will be judged after your death, not here. If you have a problem, if your baby is without head, if your baby is, you know, with any kind of diseases or doesn't let you live after birth, I will help you.

AMOS: Kuzlik insists radicals²⁴ connected to the church and the government are in power now and pushing this agenda. The latest radical²³ move, he says, the government requires Poland's central health care system to check if a patient is pregnant no matter what she came in for. Critics call it the pregnancy registry. Is it also the government's aim to track if a pregnancy ends? Antonina Lewandowska with FEDERA says, it's not yet clear.

LEWANDOWSKA: I think it's a big deal and not a big deal at the same time because that is true, not much is actually changing. The criminal law hasn't changed. People can still terminate their own pregnancies²⁵ legally until the 22nd week of gestation²⁶. So nothing has changed. The only difference is the information about the pregnancy would be actually put on - in the online medical records of the patient.

(SOUNDBITE OF PHONE RINGING)

LEWANDOWSKA: Goodness gracious. Sorry for that.

(SOUNDBITE OF PHONE RINGING)

LEWANDOWSKA: (Non-English language spoken).

AMOS: It is still legal, she insists, for a pregnant woman in Poland to terminate her pregnancy abroad. And it's still legal to order abortion pills. In fact, the data shows that Poland's abortion ban has not actually stopped abortions. The numbers remain consistent despite the ban, as Polish women find ways to make their own decisions about their bodies.

Deborah Amos, NPR News, Warsaw.

(SOUNDBITE OF FEDERICO ALBANESE'S "THE STARS WE FOLLOW")

1 abort   

v.使流产，堕胎；中止；中止(工作、计划等)

参考例句：

• The captain instructed them to abort the mission.上尉指示他们中止执行任务。
• With this button the user can abort the audio sequence.用户可以用该按钮终止音频序列。

2 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

3 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

7 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

8 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

9 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

10 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

11 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

12 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

13 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

14 tightened   

收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧

参考例句：

• The rope holding the boat suddenly tightened and broke. 系船的绳子突然绷断了。
• His index finger tightened on the trigger but then relaxed again. 他的食指扣住扳机，然后又松开了。

15 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

16 choir   

n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

17 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

18 fetus   

n.胎，胎儿

参考例句：

• In the fetus,blood cells are formed in different sites at different ages.胎儿的血细胞在不同时期生成在不同的部位。
• No one knows why a fetus is not automatically rejected by the mother's immune system. 没有人知道为什么母亲的免疫系统不会自动排斥胎儿。

19 constraint   

n.(on)约束，限制；限制(或约束)性的事物

参考例句：

• The boy felt constraint in her presence.那男孩在她面前感到局促不安。
• The lack of capital is major constraint on activities in the informal sector.资本短缺也是影响非正规部门生产经营的一个重要制约因素。

20 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

21 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

22 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

23 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

24 radicals   

n.激进分子( radical的名词复数 )；根基；基本原理；[数学]根数

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals. 一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The worry is that the radicals will grow more intransigent. 现在人们担忧激进分子会变得更加不妥协。 来自辞典例句

25 pregnancies   

怀孕，妊娠( pregnancy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Since the wartime population needed replenishment, pregnancies were a good sign. 最后一桩倒不失为好现象，战时人口正该补充。
• She's had three pregnancies in four years. 她在四年中怀孕叁次。

26 gestation   

n.怀孕；酝酿

参考例句：

• The gestation period can be anything between 95 and 150 days.妊娠期从95天至150天不等。
• This film was two years in gestation.这部电影酝酿了两年。