Thousands of Polish citizens marched in Warsaw on Wednesday in support of a proposed constitutional amendment to enact a complete ban on abortion. The opposition Civic Platform party is expected to block passage of the amendment when it comes to a vote in April. Poland's current 1993 abortion law is considered among the strictest in Europe, allowing abortions only if the pregnancy threatens the life or health of the mother; if a fetus has a potentially life-threatening condition; or if the pregnancy is the product of a crime, which is only permitted during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. A two-thirds majority is needed to amend the Polish constitution.

Last year, a Polish woman challenged the abortion law before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) as violating her privacy rights under the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. The ECHR decided in her favor last week, but the ruling will not affect the Polish law.