Overview

• Spanish law reformed in 2023 and a 2024 national protocol require regions to create a registry of medical conscientious objectors, and the central government recently gave Madrid three months to comply.
• Isabel Díaz Ayuso dismissed the registry as a “blacklist,” told women to “go elsewhere to abort,” and contradicted her own health chief’s earlier indication that Madrid would follow the law.
• Ayuso argued the registry would violate constitutional and human‑rights protections and refused to force doctors to declare beliefs, punctuating her remarks with references to the Quran and Hamas.
• Pedro Sánchez warned he will deploy all available legal instruments to guarantee abortion access in the public health system and signaled a possible case before the Constitutional Court.
• The clash follows a Vox‑backed Madrid City Council motion on “Post‑Abortion Syndrome,” as the government also prepares regulatory changes and a constitutional push to bolster abortion rights.