France's parliament officially approves law to enshrine abortion rights in the Constitution

Lawmakers voted in a joint session of parliament on Monday to guarantee abortion access by adding a line to the Constitution.

Transcript

00:00 France will officially change its constitution to make abortion a guaranteed right after

00:07 lawmakers gathered in Versailles on Monday. A joint session of both houses of parliament

00:13 needed a three-fifths majority after gaining approval of the Senate. The vote will give

00:19 women a guaranteed right to abortion enshrined in the company's constitution.

00:24 We are still far from the end of the road, but step by step equality is coming closer.

00:31 By guaranteeing the freedom to resort to voluntary interruption of pregnancy in our constitution,

00:35 we give a second victory to Simone Veil and to all those who have opened the way.

00:40 We are especially addressing a message to all women. Your body belongs to you and no one

00:45 has the right to dispose of it in your place.

00:48 The measure had been backed by French President Emmanuel Macron, who vowed to enshrine abortion

00:54 in the constitution after the US Supreme Court overturned the right for the procedure in

00:58 2022 in the United States. France is the first country in the world to write abortion as

01:04 a right into its constitution.

01:06 (applause)

01:08 (whooshing)