Motivated by the lack of transparency, brutal hostil- ity and threatening haste with which the new law on pregnancy termination was passed, Tiiiit! Inc. to- gether with H.E.R.A – Health and Research Associa- tion, Reaktor – research in action, „LezFem - LGBTI Support Centre - Helsinki Committee for Human Rights of RM“, Coalition “Sexual and Health Right of Marginalized Communities”, Fight like a woman, “Way Out” student organization, Contrapunkt and Action “Zdruzhenska” created Matka. Operating within the initiative My body – my choice! with the goal of revealing and promoting the threat on fundamental human rights that happened after the new law which restricts the access to abortion was passed, Matka wants to bring closer to the broader public the consequences of the new law as well as to engage them actively in the actions for the promotion of the right to safe and legal abortion. The target group of this initiative includes everybody - both men and women, young and elderly people, those who will have children as well as those who already have them. Because we don’t think this law affects only women. It does seriously invade the men’s intimate sphere as well. This law addresses each and every one of us, and we consider it to be only a matter of time when we will have to face with it. Bearing in mind the content of the law and the motivation on which it is based on, that facing will be painful. And bloody. Matka has found in its mission to act as a constant reminder that it is part of human dignity and body integrity for us to make our most intimate decisions on our own. No policy addressing our bodies, hearts and minds may be changed without considering our voices. Promoting the new law that is viciously endangering our basic human rights may not be used as means for distorting the attention of the public from the political and economic failures in the country. Refusal to conceive and give birth to children under the pressure of nationalistic policies in country that drowns in poverty has nothing to do with one’s responsibility towards his/her country. Parenting is not a legal duty but a personal, most intimate decision. One’s freedom is realized through practicing the right to free choice. And what is abortion if not a possible choice. That is why democratic societies have to commit to make it legal, safe and easy to access.

The initiative My body – my choice! is supported by the Foundation Open Society - Macedonia