Izabela Jaruga-Nowacka was a Polish political figure, Member of Parliament in 1993-1997 and 2001-2010.
Between 2001 and 2004 she held the office of Government Plenipotentiary on the Equal Status of Men and Women and adopted the National Plan of Action on Women.
From May 2004 to October 2005 she was Deputy Prime Minister under Prime Minister Marek Belka, simultaneously she was holding the office of Minister for Social Policy from November 2004 to October 2005.
She was a very dedicated member of the Polish Family Planning Association (TRR) for many years.
Even whilst she was Deputy Prime Minister she remained very active and helpful. She represented TRR at many international conferences including the IPPF EN Regional Council Meeting in Rome.
Izabela Jaruga-Nowacka was a leader and promoter of the 1993 resistance movement against limitations of the right to abortion in Poland.
We would see her standing on the front line of women's demonstrations at the Polish Parliament.
She was one of the most important politicians fighting for comprehensive sexual education in Poland.
Being very sensitive and emphatic let her become one of the most recognizable advocates for women, sexual minorities and poor people, who are usually marginalized. Recently, she was advocating for wide access to assisted fertility through in-vitro methods.
She was one of those parliamentarians who believed in equality between people and fought for a dignified existence without poverty or harm for everyone.
In 2005 she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
About herself she said: I’m a leftist, so I care about the dignified existence of every human being.
As an adamant and empowered woman she expressed her views and opinions very clearly and without any political opportunism.
This is the reason why she was very inconvenient for some very conservative politicians or activists.
One of the most recognizable, Polish Arcbishop Pieronek, called Jaruga-Nowacka feminist concrete who won’t be broken, even with hydrochloric acid.
The Polish Family Planning Association and IPPF European Network salute her memory.