LEGALISED ABORTION.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 84, 10 April 1937, Page 7

LEGALISED ABORTION.

RUSSIAN POLICY REVERSED. The committee expresses itself as "utterly opposed to any consideration of the legalisation of abortion for social and economic reasons." "World-wide interest has been aroused in the matter through the experience in Soviet Russia, where, for a number of years, abortion for social and economic reasons was legalised and. extensively practised. The operations were performed in special hospitals and by skilled operators.

"At first it was claimed that when the operation was done openly and carefully the risk to life was exceedingly small. It was stated, for instance, that in 1926 artificial abortion was carried out on 29.306 women in Moscow with no mortality. and that in a total of 175,000 operations in Moscow there were onlv nine deaths.

"But now come most significant reports of the after-effects to these operations, which state that 43 per cent of these women suffered from some definite illness as a result of the operation, and that the most enthusiastic Russian advocates of legalised abortion are appalled the growing evidence of serious complications following in the wake of artificial abortions.

"A recognition of these remoter dangers has undoubtedly been an important factor in bringing about the complete reversal of the previous policy in Russia, where abortion for social and economic reasons is now illegal."