Polish activists launch abortion pill locker to skirt near-total ban
Campaigners in Warsaw have unveiled what they call the world's first parcel locker for abortion pills, letting women collect the medication anonymously via a six-digit code. The move targets Poland's near-total abortion ban.
A pink, zebra-striped locker with 22 compartments has opened inside a Warsaw abortion support centre, offering women a new way to access abortion pills without waiting for mail delivery. Dubbed the "AbortOmat," the machine was launched by the Abortion Dream Team and the Women Help Women foundation as part of their continuing effort to work around Poland's strict abortion laws.
Users retrieve the pills anonymously using a six-digit code. Kinga Jelinska, director of Women Help Women, said the service targets people who cannot or do not want to wait days for delivery — including those dealing with a missed miscarriage or health complications, or who are wary of receiving pills at home.
Exploiting a legal gap
While taking or possessing abortion pills is not a crime in Poland, supplying them or helping someone obtain them can carry a prison sentence of up to three years. Jelinska described the locker as a way to blur the law's boundaries, since legislation targets direct person-to-person handover, whereas the machine inserts a layer in between.
The launch comes six years after mass protests erupted over tightened abortion restrictions, becoming the largest demonstrations in Poland since the fall of communism. Those protests are credited with helping bring Donald Tusk to power in 2023 on promises of reform within 100 days. Tusk has since said there is no parliamentary majority to legalise abortion up to the 12th week, instead pledging not to prosecute those who help facilitate abortions.
Protests continue
The abortion centre, opened in March 2025 directly across from Poland's parliament, has exceeded campaigners' expectations in reach, Jelinska said, but has also drawn frequent protests — three or four times a week — featuring sirens and vuvuzelas. She said neither the city nor police have intervened, raising fears that noise complaints could eventually force a relocation. Jelinska noted that roughly 50,000 people across Poland sought help from pro-choice networks last year.
