STATEMENT OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS COALITION
11 JUNE 2025
On behalf of the Human Rights Coalition, we have addressed the members of the National Council of the Slovak Republic with an urgent call to reject the draft resolutions of the KÚ and KDH party members (prints No. 843 and 845) concerning the European Citizens‘ Initiative „My vote, my choice“.
Both proposed resolutions contain a number of inaccuracies and misleading claims, which we have described in our statement.
Why is this initiative important?
- The cost of an abortion (on average €414) in Slovakia represents 62% of the disposable income of households with two adults and two dependent children. For many women this is a cost they cannot afford, forcing them into debt. Instead of providing help, the state in this way contributes to deepening social inequalities, increasing poverty among women and families, and endangering women’s health!
- Slovakia does not respect UN recommendations and has long ignored its commitments in the area of human rights and women’s health and has not been improving the availability of abortion care. International human rights and health standards (UN, Council of Europe, WHO, EU), as well as research in this area, have repeatedly confirm that barriers to access to abortion do not reduce the number of abortions, but increase morbidity and mortality among women. Furthermore, financial inaccessibility deepens economic inequalities and discrimination against poor women!
The aim of the initiative is for the European Commission, in the spirit of solidarity, to propose a creation of a financial support mechanism for Member States so that they can provide free abortion care to all persons living in the EU who do not have access to safe abortions.
According to the initiative, the proposed financial support should take the form of an optional mechanism available to Member States on a voluntary basis.
Slovakia ranks among the worst countries in the EU when it comes to abortion access. While other countries are moving towards improving the conditions, we are heading in the opposite direction – towards greater discrimination and poverty for women.
The statement was signed by:
Adriana Mesochoritisová, Možnosť voľby
Rado Sloboda, Amnesty International Slovensko
Zuzana Havírová, Rómske advokačné a výskumné stredisko
Monika Kapráliková, InTYMYta
Milan Zvada, Záhrada – Centrum nezávislej kultúry
Róbert Furiel, Saplinq, o. z.
Zuzana S. Szabóová, Komunitná nadácia Zdravé mesto
Ida Želinská, kolektív neon
Vlado Rafael, eduRoma
Slavo Sochor, Literárna bašta
Jana M. Hanzelová, Diera do sveta
