Wanda Nowicka

Wanda Nowicka
Deputy Marshal of Sejm
In office 8 November 2011 – 11 November 2015
Personal details
Born	21 November 1956 Lublin,Poland
Political party	Labour Union (Poland)(1997–2001) Democratic Left Alliance(2001–11) Palikot's Movement/Your Movement(2011–2013) Democratic Left Alliance (2015–19) New Left(2019–)
Website	https://www.wandanowicka.pl/

Wanda Hanna Nowicka(born 21 November 1956) is a Polish activist and politician, Member ofParliament of Polandduring 7th (2011–2015)and 9thterms (2019–2023). She served as theDeputy Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Polandfrom 8 November 2011 to 11 November 2015.

Born inLublin,she attended theUniversity of Warsaw,graduating with a degree inclassical philology,and worked as a teacher ofLatinandEnglishfrom 1985 to 1993. In 1990, Nowicka co-founded Neutrum, the Association for State Neutrality, an organization focused on the separation of church and state in Polish public life.She was also one of the founders of the Federation for Women and Family Planning in 1991, anon-governmental organizationwhich is the alliance of Neutrum and four other organizations.She led the federation as its president for 20 years, from 1991 until 2011 when she resigned having got elected toSejm.In the 9th term ofSejmshe is aChairof the Parliamentary Committee on National andEthnic Minorities.She is also a founder and a Chair of the Parliamentary Group forwomen's rights.

Protection of women's rights – International activities

Nowicka was a cofounding member of Polish Committee of NGOs – Beijing 1995 which organized active participation of Polish activists in the famous United Nations conference known asFourth World Conference on Women in Beijing(FWCW).The activities included the presentation of NGOs' report on the situation of women inPoland.At this UN conference Nowicka made a well-knownStatement of Non-Regionon behalf of women fromCentral and Eastern Europe.In 1999 Nowicka co-founded and was the first coordinator of ASTRA (Central and Eastern European Women's Network forSexual and Reproductive Health and Rights).From 1995 to 2002 she served as an expert of theWorld Health Organizationand a member of its advisory body called Gender Advisory Panel.Wanda Nowicka has been also a member of the Congress of Polish Women and board member of the association Congress of Women which is the operational body of this movement. She spoke onwomen/human rightson numerous occasions at international forums (UN,EU,Harvard University,Columbia University,New School,CUNY,University of California). She wrote numerous reports to theUNand theEuropean Uniononviolations of human rights,includingwomen's rights.

In 2003, Nowicka invitedWomen on WavestoPoland.Their ship, theLangenort,arrived for two weeks toWładysławowoat the Polish coast to organize together with Polish women's activists, actions to rise awaress about repressiveness of the anti-abortion law in Poland and to provide earlyabortionsin extraterritorial waters.These actions were violently attacked byextreme rightnationalistgroups such as the All-Poland Youth and theLeague of Polish Families,who seriously intimidated women in order to stop them from boarding the ship.

Activity in Polish politics

Politically, Nowicka has allied herself with various parties, but has remained unaffiliated outside of briefly joining theSolidaritymovement in 1980 and 1981.After 1989, she became involved inpolitics,cooperating withleft-winggroups, but remaining independent. Several times she unsuccessfully stood in various parliamentary elections. In 1991, she ran for theSejmfrom the list of Labour Solidarity, in 1997 she ran for Senator's seat on behalf of the Labour Union with 190,000 votes. In 1998–2002, she was elected to the firstMasovian Regional Assemblywith SLD on the recommendation of thePolish Socialist Party(PPS). In the 2011 parliamentary elections, she allied herself withPalikot's Movement,and she won a parliamentary seat, gaining 7065 votes.On 8 November 2011 she was electedDeputy Speakerof theSejmfor the 7th term. In February 2013 she split with thePalikot's Movementand remained independent member of theSejmtill the end term.She ran with theEuropa Pluscoalition to theEuropean Parliamentin 2014 inWarsawdistrict, and she received 7479 votes (second result), however,Europa Plusfailed to gain any seats in the elections. On 21 February 2015 she announced her participation in the presidential election on behalf of thePolish Labour Party.Her candidacy was also supported by four political parties: thePolish Left,theSocial Democracy of Poland,Polish Socialist PartyandUnion of the Left.She collected 91,000 out of 100,000 signatures required to be registered.

In 2015 Nowicka ran to Sejm with theUnited Leftcoalition inMasoviandistrict. She received 20,503 votes, which did not qualify her for a seat, because theUnited Leftdid not pass the 8% threshold required for thecoalition of parties.

In the 2019 she unsuccessfully ran to theEuropean ParliamentinKujawy-Pomeraniadistrict with the Spring (Wiosna) party, newly formed byRobert Biedroń.She received 21,993 votes.

In 2019parliamentary elections,running from the first place on the list of the Left alliance inSilesia(29th district), she received 25,767 votes, achieving a third place in the constituency and obtaining a seat as a 9th-term MP.In the Sejm, she was electedChairof the Committee on National andEthnic Minorities.She founded and has been elected as a Chair of theParliamentary GrouponWomen's Rights.

Education, teaching activities

She graduated inclassical philologyat theUniversity of Warsaw.In 1985–1993 she worked as a teacher ofLatin,GreekandEnglishin high schools inWarsaw.In 2007–2008, she taught at theUniversity of RutgersinNew Jersey,USAat the Faculty of Women's Affairs andGender StudiesonReproductive Rights Activismwith Focus onCentral and Eastern Europe.In 2016–2017 she lecturedGender Studiesat the Institute of Applied Social Sciences (University of WarsawandPolish Academy of Science) In 2016–18 she studiedbioethicsat theUniversity of Warsawandphilosophyat theSorbonneinParis.

Private life

Daughter of Kazimierz Nowicki, former prisoner ofGerman Nazi concentration campsAuschwitzandBuchenwald,and Irena Witkowska. Her stepfather wasKazimierz Albin,the former prisoner ofAuschwitz.Her husband was Światoslaw Florian Nowicki, with whom she has three sons: Florian, Michał and Tymoteusz. Florian, a doctor of philosophy, was a politician of thePolish Labour Party,Michał, historian, as a student was a well-knownleftistactivist,and Tymoteusz,kick-boxerwon the world cup inkick-boxingtwice.

She declares her knowledge of classical languages (Latin,Greek) andEnglish,RussianandFrench,as well as the ability to communicate inGermanandItalian.

Decorations and distinctions

Wanda Nowicka becameHonorary CitizenofSpartanburg,South Carolina, USA in 1992. In 1994 she was a laureate of the Polish edition of the Woman of Europe competition. In 2000, she received the Rainbow Laurel award. In 2005, she received a £100,000 award from the Sigrid Rausing Foundation for the ASTRA network for outstanding leadership (the award was used to make the filmBreaking Silence).In 2008, she won theUniversity-In-ExileAward fromNew School for Social Research in New York,in recognition of her contribution to the struggle forwomen's rightsinPolandand internationally.For active support of international cooperation and chairing the Polish-Greek parliamentary group, the Government of the Hellenic Republic awarded Wanda Nowicka the Order of Honor of the second class at the rank of Grand Commander.

List of publications

• 1994Nowicka, W."Two Steps Back: Poland’s New Abortion Law".Journal of Women’s History5 (3): 151–55. Johns Hopkins University Press.
• 1995 Coliver, S., andNowicka W.,."Poland". InThe Right to Know: Human Rights and Access to Reproductive Health Information.University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 268–284.
• 1996Nowicka, W."The effects of the anti-abortion law".EntreNous,December 1996, Copenhagen.
• 1996Nowicka, W."Roman Catholic fundamentalism against women’s reproductive rights in Poland".Reproductive Health Matters,4(8):21–29.
• 1996Nowicka, W."Beijing '95 – A Chance That Could be Missed, in Voices of Women, Moving Forward with Dignity and Wholeness". The Fetzer Institute, Kalamazoo.
• 1996Nowicka, W."More Restrictive in Life than on Paper".Conscience,17(2) (Summer), Washington.
• 1997Nowicka, W. “Ban on Abortion. Why?” and "Foundation of the Law in Ana’s Land". InSisterhood in Eastern Europe,ed. Tanya Renne. Westview Press: Division of HarperCollins Publishers.
• 1998Nowicka, W."Report to UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights" (Situation of Women, esp. Reproductive Health and Rights). Federation for Women and Family Planning, Warsaw.
• 1998Nowicka, W. “Factors Affecting Women’s Health in Eastern and Central Europe with particular emphasis on Infectious Diseases, Mental, Environmental and Reproductive Health ". Paper for Expert Meeting on Women and Health, Mainstreaming the Gender Perspective into Health Sector, Tunis.
• 1998Nowicka, W. “Mainstreaming the Gender Perspective into the Health Sector ". ENTRE NOUS, WHO, Copenhagen, Winter 1998, No 40-41.
• 1999Nowicka, W."Shadow Report on Gender Discrimination for the UN Human Rights Committee". Federation for Women and Family Planning, Warsaw.
• 1999Nowicka, W."Advocating and Monitoring the Implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action in Poland".Development42(1): 84–85.
• 1999Nowicka, W."Advocating and monitoring the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action in Poland: the benefits of NGO reporting to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights".Medical Law Journal18(2–3):295–303.
• 2000Nowicka, W., ed. "The Anti-abortion Law in Poland: Its Functioning, Social Effects and Behaviours Report". Warsaw, Federation for Women and Family Planning.
• 2000Nowicka, W., and E. Zielińska. 2000. "Medical Community’s Perspectives on Abortion". InReport of the Federation 2000,1–34.Strona główna.
• 2001Nowicka, W."Struggles for and against Legal Abortion in Poland". InAdvocating for Abortion Access,edited by B. Klugman, and D. Budlender, 226–27. Johannesburg: Women's Health Project.
• 2001Nowicka, W., and F. Girard. "Clear and Compelling Evidence: The Polish Tribunal on Abortion Rights".Reproductive Health Matters10 (19): 22–30.
• 2002Nowicka, W."Shadow Report to UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights". Federation for Women and Family Planning, Warsaw.
• 2003Nowicka, W."Solidarity over Borders". Report about Women on Waves in Poland, Federation for Women and Family Planning, Warsaw [in Polish] [Solidarność kobiet ponad granicami, Kronika wydarzeń Władysławowo 21 czerwca-4 lipca 2003].
• 2004Nowicka, W."Shadow Report on Gender Discrimination in the area of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights". Prepared for the UN Human Rights Committee.
• 2004Nowicka, W."Poland – The Struggle for Abortion Rights in Poland". InSexPolitics: Reports from the Front Lines,edited byRichard Parker,Rosalind Petcheskyand Robert Sember. Publisher: Sexuality Policy Watch. pp. 167–196.
• 2007Nowicka, W."Prawa Reprodukcyjne w Polsce [Reproductive Rights in Poland]". in Czarna Księga Kobiet WAB, Warsaw.
• 2007Nowicka, W,and M. Pochec. "Shadow Report on Women in Poland". Prepared for the UN Committee on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
• 2008Nowicka, W., (ed.) "Reproductive Rights in Poland, Report", Federation for Women and Family Planning, Warsaw.
• 2008 "The Anti-Abortion Act in Poland – The Legal and Actual State". InReproductive Rights in Poland: The Effects of the Anti-Abortion Law in Poland,Report,Nowicka W.(ed.) 17–44. Warsaw: Federation for Women and Family Planning.
• 2011Nowicka W.,Polskie zmagania o aborcjęwDrogi Równości(red B. Maciejewska, K.Kądziela, Z.Dąbrowska), Fundacja Przestrzenie Dialogu (Gdańsk 2011).
• 2011Nowicka, W."Sexual and Reproductive Rights and the Human Rights Agenda: Controversial and Contested".Reproductive Health Matters19 (38): 119–28.
• 2011Nowicka W.,Odzyskać ciało, odzyskać godnośćwA jak hipokryzja(red. Claudia Snochowska-Gonzalez), Wyd. O Matko! (Warszawa 2011).
• 2018Nowicka, W.Naruszenie praw reprodukcyjnych jako forma torturw Prawo i Medycyna, Nr 4/2017 pp. 148–168.
• 2019Wanda Nowicka& Anna C. Zielinska,Entre l’idéologie et l’économie: les politiques de natalité en Europe Centralein Mouvements des idées et des luttes (Oct. 2019) http://mouvements.info/entre-lideologie-et-leconomie-les-politiques-de-natalite-en-europe-centrale/
• 2019Nowicka, W.Les droits des femmes à l’épreuve du Sacré en Polognein L’Idée Libre, Revue fondée en 1911, La Loi et le Sacré (Dec. 2019), ed. Wafa Tamzini.
• 2019Nowicka, W. Regulska J.Book Chapter “Repressive Policies and Women's Reproductive Choices in Poland: The Case of State Violence Against Women "inWomen's Journey to Empowerment in the 21st Century(eds. Zaleski K., Enrile. A., Weiss E.L., and Wang X., Oxford University Press. (to be out in November)