adminBlantyre — Alarmed at the shocking deaths and serious injuries among the 70,000 Malawian women who seek backstreet abortions each year, some clerics are now backing a bill aimed at preventing unsafe abortions. “I’m shocked to learn that many girls and women are admitted to our hospitals every year as a result of complications sustained during procurement of unsafe abortions,” lamented Prophet Amos Tchuma of the Faith of God Ministries based in the northern Malawi city of Mzuzu.
“Just imagine, some women use bicycle spokes, cassava sticks and poisonous substances to induce abortions just because we’ve a restrictive law.” Regardless of his church’s stand, Tchuma said he supports government’s move to review the outdated abortion law so that women can access safe abortion services in public hospitals.
“Why should a schoolgirl, who’s been raped, be jailed for terminating her unwanted pregnancy?” he asked. While more conservative clerics equate abortion to murder, Tchuma says some religious leaders are opposing law reform due to their ignorance.
“Lack of knowledge has caused a lot of . . . misinformation in religious circles. Religion has become a fertile ground for breeding fundamentalism and fanaticism because of lack of knowledge,” he said in an interview.
According to Tchuma, abortion cannot be equated to murder as it is not defined as such in the Bible. He is not the only pastor who supports abortion law reform as some Presbyterian and Anglican clerics are also backing the move.
“Many women are dying as a result of procuring backstreet abortions. Is it wrong for me to support efforts that will save lives of women?” asked Rev. Father Martin Kalimbe of the Anglican Church.
“If women, who could’ve died due to unsafe abortions, are saved, the church will take the opportunity to counsel and minister to them.” This comes at a time when Malawi has drafted a Termination of Pregnancy Bill which awaits Parliament’s enactment.
Grounds for pregnancy termination in the bill include rape, incest, foetus deformation and pregnancies that endanger women’s lives or may cause mental or physical health complications.
Currently, abortion is a crime punishable by up to 14 years in jail in Malawi. Statistics from the Ministry of Health show that over 70,000 women seek backstreet abortions each year, 31,000 of which result in complications, including death.
Abortions cause 17 percent of maternal deaths in Malawi while post-abortion care, which is offered in public hospitals, costs the government nearly $1m a year. Among the leading critics of the bill are Roman Catholic bishops who denounce abortion both on the pulpit and in their pastoral letters. — AFP
Online Reporter
derick.khumalo