Leader of the Flemish Christian Democrats (CD&V) Sammy Mahdi is feeling confident about the possibility of voting on an abortion law proposal, suggesting that the majority agreement would be honoured during an interview on VRT.
The government agreement stipulates that the coalition partners will not vote on an abortion law proposal until a consensus is reached among the governing parties.
"No free votes," said Mahdi. "I communicate with various party leaders, and I believe there are enough who will respect the coalition agreement. I think there is ample wisdom in addressing ethical questions."
Within the majority, the Flemish socialist party Vooruit wishes that by the end of the legislature, parliament can vote for a law extending the abortion duration from 12 to 18 weeks, an option rejected by the CD&V. The Christian Democrats are willing to extend it to 14 weeks but no further.
'Scientific consensus'
An alternative majority, associating the Belgian Workers' Party (PTB) and Francophone centrists (DéFI), exists to override the CD&V's wishes, but no 'Vivaldi' party wants to take the risk so far.
On Saturday, Minister Tinne Van der Straeten (Flemish Greens) reminded VRT listeners about the content of the government agreement and the significance of not outbidding on this issue. She believes that forcing parliament to quickly decide on the subject is not an answer and "will not happen."
Leader of the Flemish liberal party Open VLD, Tom Ongena, supports the law's evolution but suggests that problems need to be settled within the majority.
The debate between CD&V and Vooruit has caused controversy in recent weeks: the Christian Democrats argue on the grounds of "scientific consensus" by suggesting an extension of the abortion period to 14 weeks. CD&V's view on the matter has changed, countering the Flemish socialists.
"We made the mistake of thinking that CD&V would work on a solution. As soon as the expert report emerged, the CD&V rejected it. It's the world turned upside down," regretted Vooruit leader Melissa De Praetere.
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The Flemish socialists launched an online campaign to support the evolution of the abortion law, particularly by extending the duration it can be carried out to 18 weeks and reducing the reflection period to 48 hours. They are attacking, in this respect, the conservative forces seeking to limit women's rights.
They posted an illustration of MP Freya Van den Bossche (Vooruit) – who supports the reform – and one of Mahdi depicted as blocking women's rights.
CD&V was outraged by this. According to Mahdi, only extremist parties will come out victorious from this "bitter campaign."
