The abortion debate

Press, 31 August 1977, Page 26

The abortion debate

Sir, —Gill Avery stated in her letter (“The Press,” August 27) that “foetuses are bits of tissue in mv opinion ...” I would like to suggest that she checks her facts. Whether she likes it or not.

a foetus is no more a mere bit of tissue than she is. The fact remains that foetuses breathe in fluid, urinate, move, feel pain and. it has recently been discovered by American scientists that foetuses have the ability to learn. The normal foetus contains all the organs vital to life before 12 weeks, even such details as fingernails and fingerprints. The facts are there and if the correspondent refuses to acknowledge them, then she is pushing aside the fact that a foetus is a living being who is a total individual and not just a nart pf the mother’s insides. Women should be aware of the facts of abortion and foetal development instead of choosing a course of action without really knowing what that choice involves. Refusal to accept a foetus as anything more than “a bit of tissue” is a refusal to accept facts.—Yours, etc., M SHANAHAN. August 27, 1977. [This correspondence is now closed.—Editor]