The decree states that health care providers must provide pregnant women with “a clearly identifiable indication of fetal vital signs” before proceeding with an abortion. In a statement, Hungary’s interior ministry said that “nearly two-thirds of Hungarians associate the beginning of a child’s life with the first heartbeat.” It said modern equipment can detect heartbeats early in pregnancy to provide “more comprehensive information for pregnant women”. Aron Demeter, from Amnesty International Hungary, said the decree was a “very worrying step backwards” that “basically puts women in an already difficult position into a more difficult position”. She told Sky News: “The only ‘achievement’ of this amendment will be that people trying to access abortion will be more traumatized and more stressed.” Mr Demeter said the organization was calling for the amendment to be repealed, adding: “This is not about giving women information to make informed decisions, but rather about putting pressure on them not to have access to abortion, which is certainly violation of their human rights.” Dora Duro, a politician from the radical right party Our Fatherland, took credit for the new barrier, which comes into effect on Thursday. He said the government has adopted his party’s proposal. “This is the first pro-life move since abortion was legalized in 1956, breaking a decades-old taboo,” he wrote on Facebook. Hungary has relatively liberal abortion laws despite its nationalist government, which is portrayed as a champion of traditional family values. They have remained largely unchanged since the process was legalized during the country’s socialist period in 1953. The government, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has offered significant tax breaks and subsidies for families with many children in a bid to boost the country’s declining fertility rate. It has also enshrined that “the life of a fetus shall be protected from conception” in its 2011 constitution – although it has yet to take steps to significantly tighten the country’s abortion laws.
