Abortion is healthcare, not a crime!

Abortion Rights Under Pressure

In November 2025, the annual “Silent March for Life” (Stille Mars voor het Leven) took place in The Hague. Disguised as an initiative for a “hopeful future for mothers, fathers, and children,” the organizations behind the demonstration, in reality, violate the bodily autonomy of people with a uterus by advocating against the recognition of abortion as a fundamental right. Moreover, according to many of the demonstrators, the criminalization of abortion in the Netherlands is justified, while the law should guarantee that even unwanted pregnancies are carried to term. Although a 1984 law currently exempts certain procedures from the maximum prison sentence of four years and six months still imposed for intentional termination of pregnancy, anti-abortion rhetoric appears to be increasingly prevalent in the Dutch parliament. Not only do radical right-wing parties regularly label the decision to have an abortion as ideological, but prominent Christian Democratic party members also continue to campaign against abortion by, for example, annually attending the March.

Despite the relaxation of abortion laws in dozens of countries since the 1960s, the currently resurgent pressure on abortion rights in the Netherlands is not unique. For example, in 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade ruling that established a national right to abortion, prompting several states to implement bans. In Europe, too, nationalist leaders like Hungary’s Viktor Orbán are taking steps to discourage abortion. Since 2022, pregnant women in Hungary have been legally required to listen to “fetal vital signs” before undergoing an abortion. This type of policy unnecessarily burdens the decision to have an abortion more than it almost always is and also undermines the dignity and health of these pregnant women.

A powerful counter-demonstration

To raise awareness for accessible abortion care, to break down stigma, and with the ultimate goal of removing abortion from the Dutch Criminal Code, the Dolle Mina’s organized a counter-demonstration to the Mars for life. Founded in 1969 and crucial to the second feminist wave in the Netherlands at the time, the Dolle Mina’s reignited their campaign for women’s rights in January 2025 through direct actions. Their message is clear: stay out of our wombs! Abortion is care and it should not be part of criminal law, but in the hands of those who need it.

With the support of Het Actiefonds, the counter-demonstrators, dressed in green, took to their own stage along the anti-abortion march route to show that the Netherlands will not regress to the past but will instead stand for the protection of abortion care. Featuring several guest speakers and over 1,500 participants, the counter-demonstration demonstrated a strong sense of community solidarity and delivered a strong counter-voice that affirmed reproductive autonomy as a human right. The Dolle Mina’s are determined to organize another counter-demonstration next year. In the meantime, Het Actiefonds will proudly continue to stand in solidarity with the fight for abortion rights.