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HEALTH

Do Germany’s planned changes to abortion laws go far enough?

A long-awaited change to Germany’s punitive abortion laws is underway, but some believe it stops far short of what's needed. Here’s what you need to know.

Do Germany's planned changes to abortion laws go far enough?
A woman receives a consultation at a catholic pregnancy advice centre in Baden-Württemburg. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Marijan Murat

In January this year, Germany’s traffic light coalition – made up of the Social Democrats, Free Democrats and Green party – announced its intention to undertake “the biggest reform of family law in several decades”, introducing sweeping protections for same-sex couples and non-traditional families.

Centre-stage in these reforms was a drastic overhaul of Germany’s outdated reproductive laws – stripping away a controversial clause on advertising abortion that has remained unchanged since the 1930s.

Discussing the move, Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) said the current state of abortion law in Germany created an “unacceptable situation” where doctors faced criminal proceedings for trying to help people stay informed. “That doesn’t belong in our times,” he said.

On the face of it, it seems like the long decades of feminist campaigning has paid off. But a closer look at Germany’s current abortion laws suggests that the planned reforms may only scratch the surface. 

What’s are the current abortion laws – and how will they change? 

Once of the most controversial aspects of current abortion law in Germany is Paragraph 219a, a Nazi-era clause forbidding doctors from “advertising” the availability of abortion services or sharing information on the procedure with patients. 

The government has promised to dispense with this paragraph and, earlier this year, Buschmann announced that the cabinet had agreed on a draft bill to do just that. With this initial move to allow doctors to provide information to pregnant patients, the long road to reform has already begun.

READ ALSO: Why Germany is planning to overhaul abortion information laws

However, the much-publicised and in-the-works repeal of Paragraph 219a is only one piece of the many barriers to abortion in Germany. At present, the coalition has not announced a formalised intention to abolish Paragraph 218, which continues to fundamentally criminalise abortion, leaving pregnant women to manoeuvre within tightly-defined exceptions to the law.

A pro-choice protester in Berlin wears a mask with "away with §218" on it.

A pro-choice protester in Berlin wears a mask with “away with Paragraph 218” on it. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Paul Zinken

The prospect of changing this status quo remains murky, couched in extremely careful language. The coalition contract does clearly state that access to cost-free abortions should be a part of reliable healthcare. But when it comes to fully decriminalising the act of abortion, the document only announces that a commission on reproductive self-determination and reproductive medicine will examine options for regulating abortion “outside of the framework of the criminal code”. No concrete promises there.

Katrin Helling-Plahr, FDP parliamentary group spokesperson for legal policy, was actively involved in negotiating this section of the coalition contract. Plahr has long advocated for more progressive laws on reproductive medicine, and greeted the demise of Paragraph 219a as long overdue

Responding to a request for comment on the coalition’s cautious language, she reiterated plans to appoint an exploratory commission, but made clear that her party did not necessarily regard a total decriminalisation of abortion as legally or ethically viable. 

We Free Democrats are of the opinion that Paragraph 218, as the result of a long societal discussion, represents a successful compromise with regards to protecting the life of the foetus and the right to self-determination of the pregnant person,” she wrote.

Abortion access remains fraught

Meanwhile, individuals seeking to terminate a pregnancy in Germany are often left with little choice but to travel abroad for care, to one of the many European nations with fewer barriers to abortion. 

As long as Paragraph 218 stands, those seeking legal abortions in Germany face mandatory and often aggressively pro-natalist counselling, a waiting period and strict time limitations, with abortions only available in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. And even when eligible for a legal abortion, finding a provider to perform it is another matter entirely. 

A recent story from investigative news site CORRECTIV.Lokal showed the barriers faced by individuals seeking to terminate a pregnancy in Germany, including poor access to abortion providers, discriminatory treatment, patchy insurance coverage of the costs and extensive bureaucratic burdens. As the Green parliamentarian Ulle Schauws pointed out, despite more readily available information on performing doctors after the removal of 219a, the actual sparse landscape of abortion coverage won’t automatically become any more densely populated.

The difficulty of accessing contraception 

Abortion access isn’t the only thorn in the side of folks who would rather not be pregnant. 

In 2015, Germany finally made the morning-after pill available over the counter, without a prescription. Though many people are able to obtain it without too much hassle, there’s evidence to suggest that different pharmacies handle the situation differently – with some taking a more invasive approach. 

When US citizen Courtney Harrison tried to get emergency contraception at a German pharmacy, she found the experience intensely personal and far removed from the ease of obtaining most other over-the-counter medications. Before being given the medication, she was brought back to a separate room and had to speak with multiple staff members. 

“They had to ask a bunch of questions and I had to fill out a form,” she said, questioning the necessity of sharing “intimate details” with two different people just to obtain an over-the-counter medication. 

A woman holds the morning-after pill at a pharmacy

A woman holds the morning-after pill at a pharmacy. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/dpa-tmn | Benjamin Nolte

“I hope people who need Plan B here in Germany don’t face judgement when they have to personal answer questions about their reproductive health and sex history. I felt embarrassed and overwhelmed,” she added.

While reforms to access to contraception aren’t specifically on the cards, the traffic light coalition has pledged to ease the financial burden of obtaining it.

In the coalition pact, the parties say they want to give health insurance companies the ability to cover the cost of regular contraception “as a statutory benefit”, as well as making free contraceptives available for those on low incomes. Emergency contraception is already covered by health insurance – but only after a visit to the GP. 

They also want to invest in research for contraceptives “for all genders” – presumably including the much-awaited pill for men. 

READ ALSO: What you need to know about the abortion law battle that divides Germany

Do the reforms go far enough?

Though the traffic-light coalitions have made pledges that go far beyond anything posited by the previous conservative-led government, some campaigners question whether the changes set out will be enough to make a meaningful difference. 

At present, potential expense, legal issues and a mountain of bureaucracy often limit women’s access to reproductive healthcare. That, and the ever-debated Paragraph 218, that continues to consider abortion a criminal offence. 

“In Germany my body belongs, de facto, to the state,” journalist and campaigner Mithu Sanyal said in an interview with Deutschland Funk. “You can see that in a law like Paragraph 218: the state can decide whether I get an abortion or not.”

Though the coalition has also pledged to make abortions free of charge and tackle the information and access issues, the legal issues remain a sticking point. 

Speaking to broadcaster RBB24, Sabrina Odebrecht, who works at a pregnancy advice centre in Berlin, said she thought it was right for women to be offered counselling before an abortion. But, she added, they should have the right to choose whether to accept it without fearing legal consequences. 

“I think it is wrong to criminalise the procedure in principle, to criminalise and frighten women and doctors,” Odebrecht said. “That is why Paragraph 218 should finally be dropped.”

So despite the incoming changes, the debates surrounding abortion law are far from over. 

Member comments

  1. I wonder are these pro choice people and ministers the same ones who want to force people into vaccination?
    Everyone should have a choice. But I dont think abortion should be touted as a cure all. Decriminalise it and allow the parties involved to openly discuss options. It just can not be made too easy it is a very serious thing. Not a quick fix.

  2. Florida just changed their law and I find it reasonable. It gives women an option, but not an open-ended one that takes into account fetal development.

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POLITICS

ANALYSIS: What do Germany’s far-right gains in EU elections mean for foreigners?

Despite months of scandals, the far-right AfD made significant gains in both the EU and local elections at the start of June. What does this mean for foreigners in the country?

ANALYSIS: What do Germany's far-right gains in EU elections mean for foreigners?

For many years, as in many countries, the election of the European parliament was something of a non-event in Germany.

Between 1999 and 2014, a meagre 38-43 percent of the German electorate made it to the polling booth to vote for their EU representatives, despite the country’s reputation as a cornerstone of the European project.

Over the past five years, however, the mood has changed. According to analysts at the Konrad Adenauer Stifting, EU elections have become something of a temperature check in Germany, giving disgruntled voters a chance to air their views on the governing parties in between federal and state elections. 

This year, a record 64.8 percent of voters cast their ballot – and the message to the government was clear. All three of the traffic-light coalition parties – the Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and Free Democrats (FDP) – languished well below 15 percent, while the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) parties won the largest vote share at 30 percent. 

READ ALSO: Conservatives lead as Scholz’s coalition suffers defeat at EU polls in Germany

Most shocking, however, was the other clear winner of Germany’s EU elections: the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which landed in second place with 15.9 percent of the vote and increased their vote share by almost five percent, compared to the results of the last EU elections in 2019. 

In eastern states like Thuringia, Brandenburg and Saxony, the party gained the largest share of the votes, polling around 30 percent. 

Similar results were returned in the local elections that were held the same day. In the former GDR states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania, the AfD emerged as the clear victor in the vast majority of local communes. 

For many foreigners in Germany – especially those who were unable to vote themselves – the gains made by the far-right have been shocking.

The AfD is emerging as a serious contender in German politics, and appears to be moving from the fringes to the mainstream. 

READ ALSO: Germany’s far-right AfD sees strong gains in local eastern elections

Normalisation of the far-right

The election results made clear that for many AfD voters, there’s no longer a reason to have to hide. A recent study by the Scientific Centre for Social Research in Berlin confirmed this view, highlighting how far-right ideas on topics like migration and Islam had come to be more widely accepted among the general public, as well as shaping media discourse.

For more than six months now, the AfD has been buffeted by scandal after scandal: in Thuringia, AfD fraction leader Björn Höcke was recently found guilty of spouting banned nazi slogans in speeches, while in the run-up the EU elections, leading candidate Maxmilian Krah was rocked by accusations of corruption after an aide was arrested on suspicion of spying for China. Then he was banned from appearing in the election after he made comments downplaying the crimes of Nazi SS officers.

AfD politician Maximilian Krah

Maximilian Krah, AfD top candidate for the European elections, makes a press statement after the meeting with the AfD parliamentary group leadership on Wednesday. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Michael Kappeler

Back in November, an investigation by Correctiv revealed that prominent members of the AfD had attended a secret meeting in which they discussed the concept of ‘remigration’: sending unwanted foreigners, including those with a migration background, back to their supposed home countries. 

But despite the media frenzy around these revelations, the far-right party still made significant gains on polling day, though admittedly not as well as earlier polls suggested.

“The strong turnout of the AfD, especially in the east German states, shows that the party increasingly establishes itself in Germany’s party system,” York Albrecht, researcher at the Institute for European Politics in Berlin, told Al Jazeera.

This increasing normalisation of extreme parties and positions could make it hard to reverse the gains that the AfD has made and may push other more parties even further to the right. 

Influence on German politics 

With all of Germany’s major parties refusing to govern alongside the AfD, it’s highly unlikely that the party will ever get a chance to enact their own policies – but their growing influence in Germany means that others may well deliver them on their behalf. 

Nowhere is this more prominent than in the backlash against widespread migration, with even centre-left parties in government taking a tougher and more populist line on the treatment of refugees, for example by restricting access to social benefits.

Though the CDU/CSU parties emerged as the winner of the EU elections, there are some questions about why they failed to capitalise fully on the disastrous polling numbers of the three ruling parties. 

While the SPD, Greens and FDP lost a total of 21 points collectively, the Union picked up just six of these, while the AfD made gains across the board. This fact could lead the centre-right parties to conclude that a further move to the right is required, such as calling for stricter migration controls, the scrapping of green policies or the restrictions of certain rights for foreigners.

This is a trend we’ve already seen in recent months from the CDU. When the party released its party programme back in May, the concept of Leitkultur took centre-stage. As opposed to multiculturism, Leitkultur involves migrants integrating fully into the dominant culture of Germany, adopting its language, culture, customs and way of life. 

READ ALSO: How the CDU wants to change Germany

Meanwhile, the poor results for the traffic-light coalition will put Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) under increased pressure to change course as the parties sit down for budget negotiations this month and next.  

Outside of the realm of parliamentary politics, it seems like fears about foreigners and the impact of migration are also on the rise.

In a 2023 survey ranking the fears of the Germans, the proportion of people who feared that Germany and its institutions could be overwhelmed by refugees rose by 11 points to 53 percent, while the proportion of people who feared migration could lead to a breakdown of German society increased by 10 point to 47 percent. 

This sense of fear and hostility may not have yet convinced the governing traffic-light coalition to change course on its plans to boost skilled migration, but the feeling of being unwelcome could have a tangible effect on foreigners’ lives.

Furthermore, if the EU elections can function as a predictor of what’s to come when the federal elections roll around in September next year, the CDU/CSU may well be in the driving seat, along with migration and social policies that echo those of the far-right. 

The wider EU picture

When it comes to the European parliament itself, the picture is slightly more nuanced.

Though the far-right European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) and Identity and Democracy (ID) groups made gains, the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), led by European President Ursula von der Leyen, remains the largest bloc. 

At present, it also appears that the extreme right is starting to fragment, especially after the AfD were kicked out of ID – in reaction to the aforementioned comments by Maximilian Krah that not all Nazi SS soldiers were criminals. 

READ ALSO: What the EU election results say about the state of politics in Germany

That said, experts agree that the latest round of parliamentary elections represents a drastic lurch to the right in European politics and could make it easier for right-wing and far-right parties to set the agenda over the next five years.

European parliament

A person holds an EU flag at the European Parliament building, during an election evening in Strasbourg, on June 9th, 2024, after the vote for the European Parliament election. Photo by: SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP

In concrete terms, that could mean torpedoing climate initiatives like the European Green Deal and plans to phase out combustion engines over the coming years.

READ ALSO: INTERVIEW – ‘Failed climate policies are fuelling far-right politics in Germany’

On the migration policy side, the European parliament could move towards implementing tougher rules for migrants and refugees and permitting the erosion of some civil rights for foreigners. 

However, experts say a key outcome of the current parliamentary constellation is that it will simply be harder to get anything done.

“Under this parliament, it will be hard to read a clear strategic agenda other than some of the core principles around security and the economy,” Susi Dennison, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), told Al Jazeera this week.

“What we will see emerging is deal-by-deal policymaking.”

In this situation, the far-right are bound to “play hard” to enforce their policies over the next five years, Dennison added. 

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