00:01On Thursday, the European Commission announced member states could use an EU social fund to provide abortion care for women
00:08facing barriers.
00:10The Commission stopped short of creating a new funding mechanism, which was requested by the European Parliament in December.
00:17The decision therefore drew mixed responses.
00:20Women's rights groups and activists hailed the decision, while critics argued that without establishing a dedicated fund, the EU was
00:28effectively rejecting the Parliament's proposal.
00:31Euronews spoke with the coordinator of the citizen-led initiative that brought it all into action.
00:36What does yesterday's decision mean for women across Europe, particularly for countries where there's more heavy restrictions or complete restrictions
00:46in place, like Malta? What does this mean for them?
00:50I think that yesterday's decision was a historic one, and it was historic for women and also for the European
00:57democracy.
00:57It was for the first time in history stated that abortions can be funded by the funds of the European
01:04Union.
01:05And this was said very clearly, and it was also clear from the speeches of the commissioners that the European
01:11Union will make a commitment to reproductive health.
01:16My Voice, My Choice is a European Citizens Initiative, a mechanism that allows citizens to call on the EU to
01:23propose new legislation.
01:24If an initiative gets at least one million signatures across seven EU countries, it gets considered by the bloc's institutions.
01:32We brought something to the table, we brought our own chair to the places where we usually don't have the
01:39chairs, and I think it proved through these three years that together we were able to make a change.
01:45My Voice, My Choice did express its disappointment that a dedicated fund wasn't created, but welcomed the development as positive
01:53progress nonetheless.
01:54The move marks an unusual step taken by the European Union, as healthcare policy is typically determined at a national
02:02level.
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