Three appellate courts refused to legalize abortions in Northern Ireland hospitals in cases where women became pregnant after being raped or the pregnancy is doomed due to a fatal anomaly of the embryo. The UK Department of Justice and Attorney General John Larkin appealed against the almost total prohibition of abortion in Northern Ireland after the Supreme Court ruling that it violates the European Convention on Human Rights. But the Belfast Court transferred responsibility for any changes to the strict regime of abortion in the region to Parliament. In Northern Ireland, someone who makes illegal abortions can get life imprisonment, so many women go outside of Ireland to have an abortion. In turn, the United Nations has issued a report stating that the prohibition of abortion in Northern Ireland discriminates against women and degrades human dignity. With this in mind, the United Nations has urged Northern Ireland to legitimize the practice of abortion and to provide modern procedures for abortion.

So, what is your attitude to complete prohibition of pregnancy termination in Northern Ireland

The Lower House of the Czech Parliament agreed to change the Constitution so that the Czechs could legally carry and use firearms in the event of a threat to the national security by terrorists. Now the decision is to be approved by the Upper House of Parliament.  Thus, the head of the Czech Ministry of the Interior said that the Czech authorities did not want to disarm their citizens at a time when the security situation in Europe is deteriorating. In turn, these changes are contrary to the European Union’s arms control rules, which were strengthened in December 2016, despite the objections of the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, and Poland. The Czechs intend to resolve this issue in court. At the same time, it is noted that full freedom to carry and store firearms, as it is permitted in some states of the United States of America, will not be used in the Czech Republic. In addition, the bill would apply only to citizens of the Czech Republic, having no effect on citizens of other EU countries who permanently reside in the territory of the republic.

So, how do you feel about the Czech authorities’ intention to allow their citizens to use weapons in the event of a threat to national security?

Poland is undergoing a new wave of de-communization. The country’s government decided that the country had not yet removed all the reminders of the history of Soviet Poland and developed a law prohibiting the propaganda of communism or any other totalitarian system. The parliament voted in favor of new norms, to approve amendments to the law prohibiting the propaganda of Communism demanding the dismantling of symbols of the Soviet era, including monuments and memorials. A Senator from the ruling party “Law and Justice” (PiS) said that the adoption of such a law was initiated by representatives of local authorities, who could not cope with this problem on their own. He was supported by 79 Senators, none spoke against him. The Senator also emphasized that the law was accepted in agreement, overall political differences, which, in turn, demonstrates the need for its adoption. All costs associated with changing the names of streets will fall on the shoulders of local governments. Citizens living on such streets will not be required to change their documents, but all plates, business cards, signage, etc. will have to be changed at own expense. Some are convinced that for Poles such a reform is an extra worry. Discussing this issue online, a significant number of people express dissatisfaction because of future confusion and losses for businessmen.

So, how do you feel about the decision of the Sejm of Poland to ban the propaganda of Communism?