Activists from Poland have introduced their first dispenser for medical abortions, which they named 'abortomate'. This small pink cabinet contains 22 compartments with packages of medication required for a medical abortion.
Kinga Jelincka, director of the Women Help Women foundation based in Canada and co-founder of Abortion Dream Team, stated that they are constantly looking for ways to make access to abortion simpler, more accessible, welcoming, and person-centered. These statements were made by her in an interview with the French news agency AFP.
The dispenser is located inside an abortion support center that the activists created over a year ago in a symbolic location—directly opposite the Polish parliament, which has failed to fulfill its promises to soften strict legislation.
Unlike a regular medical clinic, this center provides women access to various resources, including abortion pills, as well as a space where they can receive support or undergo a pharmacological abortion.
In Poland, abortion is only permitted in two cases: when the pregnancy is the result of a crime, such as rape or incest, or when there is a threat to the mother's life or health. Nevertheless, no law punishes women who have an abortion independently, for example, by using pills ordered online.
According to the activists, this legal loophole allows them to keep the center operating. Kinga Jelincka noted that 'abortomate' is in a sense a 'trick' around the law.
Assistance with abortion is still punishable by up to three years in prison. Furthermore, Women Help Women added that 'the pills are supplied by a machine operated by an organization based outside of Poland,' so that no one is punished.
The creation of this center is causing protests from conservative Catholic groups.