The right-wing majority Senate rejected a government-backed cross-party bill to enshrine abortion rights in the Constitution at first reading on Wednesday, October 19, but the passionate debate will resume next month in The National. meeting
The text, signed by senators from seven of the eight political groups in the Senate, except for the first of them, Les Républicains, was discussed in the context of the reserved area (“parliamentary niche“) to the environmental group. His rejection came by a vote of 139 to 172, after sometimes heated exchanges that turned into a right-left showdown.
“The senatorial majority chose to register against the wishes of 81% of French men and womenMelanie Vogel, the author of the bill, responded, “for whom”.this fight is not over. He’s just getting started“.
“The Power of the Symbol”
Two similar constitutional bills are being developed in the National Assembly at the initiative of the left-wing “Nupes” alliance and the “Renaissance” group of the presidential majority.
At the Palais Bourbon, the Macronists want to move their text to November 9 in the Law Commission and the week of November 28 in midterms. Include the right to abortion in the constitutionwould have the power of a symbolEric DuPont-Moretti, the keeper of the seals, announced. He assured that “the government will respond to support many parliamentary initiatives in this area“. “Do we prefer a society where the right to abortion is protected at the top of our hierarchy of norms, or a society where a simple law can override it?Melanie Vogel asked.
LR reporter Agnes Canayer claims that “today these rights are fully protected by positive law” and that there was “there is no need to import a debate about American culture into France“. “Political risk does not exist in France in 2022, and that is goodLoic Herve assured the centre-back. “We’re not militants here, we’re making laws, and that would obviously be a bad law“, Contributed by Muriel Jourda (LR).
“Hold your hand!”
On the left, Laurence Rossignol (PS) confirmed that “Anti-abortion currents have never disarmed since 1975“. “Hold your hand, count, save us from that random back and forth“, he said to the minister. The proposed constitutional law, once voted on by both chambers within the same time frame, will still have to be submitted to a referendum for final adoption. A bill can be submitted to him for approval in Congress. “We all know the difficulty of a referendum (…) especially in this unstable political period“, – emphasized the senator of Paris, Esther Benbasa.
Lawrence Cohen (CRCE Communist Majority) recalled that his group “introduced a bill back in 2017 before the US Supreme Court’s rulingto give up the right to an abortion. Debate erupted when Bouches-du-Rhône Senator Stéphane Ravier (Reconquest) seconded a procedural motion that was defeated by 344 votes to outright rejecting the text, which he said does.wasting precious time“. “Dangerous, useless text that allows its authors to use agit-prop“, he said, disgusted.”attacks on life“.
“You clearly show why we do what we do.Melanie Vogel responded. “Imagine that one day you are in power, I think that the right to abortion is seriously threatened in this country.“, the minister added.
The text found support in the senatorial majority benches. 15 centrists voted in favor, including the president of the delegation of women’s rights, Annick Billon, the rapporteur of the social security budget, Elizabeth Doino, the quaestor, Vincent Capo-Canellas, the vice-president, Valerie Letar, or the president of the Regional Development Commission. . Two elected LRs also voted in favor and six abstained. When it comes to amending the Constitution, the Senate has the same powers as the Assembly and has a kind of veto power.
Source: Le Figaro
