Maori M.P.’s liberal abortion move

Press, 8 October 1977, Page 3

Maori M.P.’s liberal abortion move

PA Wellington Mrs Whetu TirikateneSullivan, member of Parliament for Southern Maori has come up with the most liberal option for abortion so far proposed under the Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Bill. She wants a woman herself to decide about an abortion, in consultation with the doctor of her choice. “Surely this L the crux of the matter — whose right it is to decide,” said Mrs Ti-rikatene-Sullivan last evening.

Her proposal is the third substantive amendment to the abortion provisions in the bill, which will be given a second reading on Tuesday. The first was proposed by the Minister of Energy Resources (Mr Gair) whose Supplementary Order Paper calls for the choice to be made by two independent doctors, one of whom can be a woman’s own doctor.

Earlier yesterday, the Senior Government Whip (Mr W. F. Birch) proposed in a Supplementary Order Paper prepared by a group of members that abortion decisions be made by two certifying consultants on referral by a doctor of the woman’s choice. The three proposals would dispense with the controversial panel system in the bill, which follows

closely the recommendations of the Royal Commission. Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan, the first woman member of Parliament to put forward a Supplementary Order Paper, says the proposal by Mr Birch and his group is virtually another panel, providing no significant improvement. She believes Mr Gair’s amendment provides another “obstacle course.!’ “My aim is to remove these obstacle Courses and to restore to every woman the right to be involved in her own decision, without unnecessary invasion of her privacy,” Mrs TirikateneSullivan said. The Minister of Justice (Mr Thomson) said last evening that apart from these private members' amendments, there were two Ministerial Supplementary Order Papers to clarify the ideas expressed in the commission’s report. ■ As well, he had been notified of six other proposed amendments. These were in the names of Mr J. L. Hunt, dealing with rape and sterilisation, Mr C. R. Marshall, dealing with the family planning clauses, Mr H. J. Walker, also on family planning, Mr L. W. Gandar and Mr J. H. Elworthy, dealing with clause 56 on education in human development and relationships, and Mr B. E. Brill on the Crimes Act and other provisions. Announcing his amend-

iment yesterday, the Senior Government Whip (Mr W, F. Birch) said the panel system' was too inflexible. The compromise proposed by his group retains the [core of the panel system in that the decision for an abortion will be made by two certifying consultants. But it dispenses with many of the steps leading up to i their decision now required under the bill and gives the woman, her doctor, and the operating physician a part in the procedures. The amendment lays down that a decision must be made within 14 days.

Mr Birch said the amendment presented in a supplementary order paper yesterday was prepared by himself, Mr B. E. Brill (Nat. Kapiti), Mr A. G. Malcolm (Nat., Eden), Mr F. M. Colman (Lab., Petone), and Mr D. R. Lange (Lab., Mangere). “If you want to prevent abortion on demand I can’t see there is any other way you can have it,” Mr Birch said.

The second reading of the bill will start on Tuesday. Amendments will be voted on during the committee stages debate, which is expected to start on Wednesday. A survey at Victoria University showed only 7.8 per cent of the students agreed with the recommendations of the commission, said the president of the Students’ Association (Ms L. Cassidy) yesterday.