Abortion has been legal in France since 1975. (document)
The Vatican reiterated its opposition to abortion on Monday as French lawmakers prepared to include abortion rights in the country’s constitution, a first in the world.
“The Pontifical Institute for Life recalls that in the era of universal human rights, there is no ‘right’ to take human life,” the Vatican agency said in a statement, echoing concerns already raised by French Catholic bishops.
It calls on “all governments and all religious traditions to do their utmost to make the protection of life an absolute priority at this stage in history”.
It added: “The special living conditions of our time and the difficult and tragic circumstances must be addressed on the basis of a law that aims first and foremost to protect the weakest and most vulnerable.”
The congresses of both houses of France’s parliament are expected to vote in Versailles on Monday to include abortion rights in the country’s constitution.
Abortion has been legal in France since 1975. But if lawmakers approve the new move, France will become the only country in the world to explicitly protect the right to terminate pregnancy in its basic law.
Pope Francis, leader of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics, has previously described abortion as “murder.”
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