Victim of an attempted rape in Poland, where she had come to study ten years ago, Nastya Podorojnya now comes to the aid of refugee women, especially when these women in distress are faced with an unwanted pregnancy.

She herself describes herself on the Instagram social network as the “Ukrainian abortion fairy in Poland”, a country where voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion) is virtually prohibited.

Arriving in Poland in 2014, Nastya Podorojnya was the victim of a sexual assault and had to answer a series of detailed questions in court, some even relating to her grades as a schoolgirl…

“I discovered how difficult it was for an immigrant to talk about her experience in a foreign language,” the 26-year-old Ukrainian girl told AFP.

At the beginning of 2022, when Russia launched its offensive on her country, Nastya decided to launch a channel on the Telegram network to support women fleeing war.

Baptized “Martynka”, the first name of his niece, this helpline offers help with translations, the steps to obtain the right to stay in Poland or for psychological support. “Martynka is your friend in Poland. If you don’t have anyone here, Martynka is still there,” summarizes Nastya.

Poland has hosted around 1.2 million Ukrainian refugees, mostly women, according to local statistics.

A country with a Catholic tradition, it already had one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe when the Constitutional Court sided with the populist-nationalist government last year by declaring terminations of pregnancy for “unconstitutional” fetal malformation.

Doctors can only terminate a pregnancy in the event of rape or incest, or when the life or health of the mother is at stake, unlike in Ukraine where abortion is authorized until the 12th week of pregnancy. pregnancy.

For many women fleeing the war, this law is one more suffering.

“Very often, they say they are amazed, shocked, they find it hard to believe… They are not used to seeing their reproductive rights restricted,” Niko Doroshenko told AFP. Martynka activist.

The 26-year-old said she also received calls from victims of war crimes.

“Some women have fled the annexed territories and tell various stories behind their pregnancies. They think they arrive in a safe country, that they have fled the nightmare, but their nightmare continues”, continues Niko.

To these women in distress, Martynka offers assistance, within the limits of the law.

“We don’t participate in abortions. We provide information on legal and safe abortions, or we put women in contact with organizations that help perform these kinds of abortions.”

“Informing is not illegal in Poland” and it is often the information that is the most valuable, underlines Nastya Podorojnya, who assures that Martynka is “the first Ukrainian organization to disseminate information on safe abortion in Poland “.

Its chatbot (e-mail program) is currently run by seven activists, including some based in Berlin and kyiv. Since March 2022, they have answered more than a thousand calls.

But the appeals do not only concern abortion, women suffering from war trauma or victims of human trafficking being numerous to confide.

It happens that “a refugee starts a relationship with a man, falls in love with him and moves in with him. Then the drugs come into play, and the man forces his intoxicated victim to have sex with other men”, explains Nastya.

There are also victims of domestic violence, she says, citing the recent case of a young Ukrainian woman in advanced pregnancy who had suffered “horrible violence”, she says modestly.

The young woman was not considered a refugee because she had not come to Poland directly from Ukraine, a condition for benefiting from the right to free health care.

With the help of lawyers, Martynka allowed him to cross the border again to qualify. She has since given birth.

“Martynka is mainly associated with abortion assistance (…) but we are for free choice and we support mothers wholeheartedly,” says Nastya.

In Poland, pro-choice organizations have a tough life. In March, an activist was found guilty of providing abortion pills to a pregnant woman and sentenced to community service.

“We know what happened to him,” admits Nastya. “And sometimes, when I close the door, I think that one day the police might come knocking…”

08/23/2023 09:27:44 – Krakow (Poland) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP