adminThe Herald, October 26, 1979
A PARLIAMENTARY committee has begun a detailed discussion on a Bill to restrict Britain’s liberal abortion laws, despite strong opposition from women’s movements.
The Private Member’s Bill seeks to restrict abortions to the first 20 weeks of pregnancy against the present 28 weeks and also limit grounds for termination reports Iana-AP.
The Bill has aroused increased interest after a report revealed that a baby boy lived for 10 minutes following an abortion in Glasgow earlier this month on a woman who was 24 weeks pregnant.
About 130 000 abortions were carried out in the UK in 1977, and about 30 000 of them were foreign women mainly from Spain and Italy.
Parliament approved the new Bill in principle earlier this year.
The Abortion Law Reform Association, one of more than 40 pro-abortion groups, called on aborted women to “flood” Members of Parliament with letters protesting against the restrictive amendment of the law.
On Wednesday the Roman Catholic Church in Britain sanctioned resistance by its followers to calls by trade unions and the opposition Labour Party to rally support for the existing law.
Mr John Corrie, a Scottish MP who drafted the Bill, was receiving 200 to 300 letters a day from people firmly opposed to it.
The only requirement for abortion now is that two doctors must agree it is necessary for reasons of a woman’s physical or mental health, and a pregnancy must be terminated within its first 28 weeks.
The British Medical Association says experience shows 20 weeks should be the limit.
LESSONS FOR TODAY
Abortion is a contentious subject that has divided opinions in different nations across the world, with both pro-lifers and pro-abortion (mainly women) lobbyists often resorting to demonstrations to state their cases.
The most contentious issue about abortion is the need to respect the sanctity of human life. This is the belief that is widely held by Christians and other religions.
In Zimbabwe, abortion is only allowed in very limited cases especially if a pregnancy poses danger to the mother’s health.
The restrictions on abortions have resulted in the mushrooming of backyard clinics in most countries that perform illegal abortions and in most cases, there are fatalities due to the unhygienic conditions in the makeshift clinics.
Online Reporter
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