Liberals win vote on abortion

Press, 5 July 1978, Page 3

Liberals win vote on abortion

lp A Wellington Parliament yesterday voted 35-33 in favour of reinstating foetal abnormality as a ground for abortion within the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. The vote, the most significant victory for the liberal camp in three years of protracted debate in Parliament, came through an amendment proposed by the Minister of Education (Mr Gandar) to the Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Amendment Bill. This amendment was adopted by the House during the committee stages debate on the final clause of the bill. All previous attempts to have the law relaxed in the committee stages had been defeated. One of the last to vote on the amendment was the Government member for Raglan (Miss Marilyn Waring). She remained in her seat almost until the final moment for voting, and counted members as they walked into the lobbies. When most members had entered the lobbies, she registered her vote with the “ayes,” and came out smiling broadly. When the result was announced, some members clapped and cheered. The vote is a reversal of the decision reached by Parliament last year. The provision was defeated then 34-26. The: new provision will allow an abortion if there is “substantial risk that the child, if born, would be so physically or mentally abnormal as to be seriously handicapped.” It is restricted to the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon), who has taken a conservative line throughout the debate, did not speak to the amendment but voted against it. A clause with a similar effect was included last year when the bill was brought into the House after the recommendations of the Royal Commission on contraception, sterilisation, and abortion, but it was deleted from the bill on an amendment proposed by the Labour Member for Timaru (Sir Basil Arthur). One of the main opponents of the clause’s being reinstated yesterday was the Labour Member for Porirua (Dr G. A. Wall). Diagnosis of an abnormality depended on a small amount of fluid being drawn from the amniotic sac (the fluid around the foetus), he said, except in the later stages of pregnancy, when bones were formed and abnormality could be detected by X-ray. Detection was not possible before 16 weeks without danger to the foetus and in normal circumstances abnormalities could not be detected until after the twentieth week of pregnancy. Dr Wall said that allowing abortion on the. ground ot foetal abnormality would be to invite a “great deal of dishonest medical certification.” Abnormality should not be singled out as an absolute ground for abortion, but considered among all other matters affecting the physical health of the mother.’he said. In another division. Dr Wall was unsuccessful in an attempt to amend the controversial clause in the present act which says that abortion is lawful if the mother’s health is in danger, and “that the danger cannot be averted by any other means.” Dr Wall, who sponsored

i the clause originally sought to amend it by making it , read “and that the danger i cannot be reasonably averted ; by any other treatment or procedure normally carried : out during pregnancy." The amendment • was defeated, 53-15. Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan described the change as ’ “nonsense” and “semantic conjuring.” Mr Thomson reminded the

House that the Supervisory Committee was opposed to Dr Wall’s amendment. The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) voted for the amendment following comments by the Government Member for Hamilton East, Dr 1. J. Shearer, that he was pleased those who had originally voted for the so-called amendment in December were now resigned to the fact that it was a “disaster”. Mr Muldoon said Dr Shearer’s comments were another example of the “kind of thing” coming from the pro-abortionists. Later, an amendment by Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan to allow women under 17 and over 35 to obtain abortions as of right was defeated, 4720, on a division. Outlining the reasons for her amendment, Mrs Tirika-tene-Sullivan said that offspring of adolescent mothers, if they survived, were more likely to have impaired intellectual functibning. “Similarly, in the older age-group, the risk of birth defects rises dramatically after 30. and even more so after 35.” she said. Mr Thomson said he would vote against the proposed amendment because the matter was discussed during debate on the original act fast year. The Royal Commission had also n6t brought' down any recommendation on the question of age, he said.

Another amendment put ■ forward by Mrs TirikateneI Sullivan, to make rape a . ground for abortion, was ! narrowly defeated, 35-33. Under the original legisla- ! tion, rape can be taken into account but the proposed change sought to make rape 1 a ground in its own right. Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan said that she was reflecting the very strong public opinion that a woman should not 'be forced to bear a child that was the result of rape. “Where there is rape and there is no reason to disbelieve the woman, that woman should be allowed to have a legal abortion,” she said. Dr Wall said Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan’s proposed amendment would be virtually impossible to implement in law. Pregnancy resulting from rape appeared to be extremely rare, he said. A personal survey of gynaecologists showed “a considerable number of rapes, but not one pregnancy.” Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan said Dr Wall “should produce his survey.” She said that three Wellington gynaecologists had *‘in their caseload women who as a result of rape have become pregnant.” The Roman Catholic Church had even made a special dispensation to allow nuns raped in the Belgian Congo to have abortions, she said. Her amendment was defeated, 35-33. Two further attempts by Mrs Tirikatene-Sullivan to allow abortion for family and. socio-economic reasons, and on the ground of contraceptive failure, were both defeated on divisions — the former 48-22, and the latter, 56-11. Voting on the Gandar amendment was as follows:— Ayes.—K. K. Allen (Nat., Tauranga), B. G. Barclay (Lab., Christchurch Central), Mrs M. D. Batchelor (Lab., Avon), B. L. Bell (Nat., Gisborne). G. Christie (Lab., Napier), Miss C. E. Dewe (Nat., Lyttelton), R. O. Douglas (Lab., Manukau),

G. P. Downie (Independent, Pakuranga), J, Faloon (Nat., Pahiatua), A. J. Faulkner (Lab., Roskill), A. M. Finlay (Lab., Henderson), W. W. Freer (Lab., Mt Albert), A. P. D. Friedlander (Nat., New Plymouth), G. F. Gair (Nat,, North Shore), L. W. Gandar (Nat., Ruahine), E. S. Holland (Nat., Riccarton), J. L. Hunt (Lab., New Lynn), E. E. Isbey (Lab., Grey Lynn), M. P. Jones (Nat., Invereargill), R. J. La Varis (Nat., Taupo), J. K. McLay (Nat., Birkenhead), C. R. Marshall (Lab., Wanganui), D. F. Quigley (Nat., Rangiora), F. L. Rogers (Lab., Onehunga), I. J. Shearer (Nat., Hamilton East). R. L. Talbot (Nat., South Canterbury), H. C. Templeton (Nat., Karori), D. Thomson (Nat., Stratford), Mr S. W. TirikateneSullivan (Lab., Southern Maori), R. J. Tizard (Lab., Otahuhu), R. F. Walls (Lab., Dunedin North), Miss Marilyn Waring (Nat., Raglan), P. I. Wilkinson (Nat., Rodney), T. J. Young (Lab., Hutt). Noes.—L. R. Adams-Schneider (Nat., Waikato), Sir Basil Arthur (Lab., Timaru), W.. R. Austin (Nat., Awarua), B. J. Beetham (Social Credit, Rangitikei), W. F. Birch (Nat.,- Franklin), B. E. Brill (Nat., Kapiti), F. M. Colman (Lab., Petone), K. M. Comber (Nat., Wellington Central), M. A. Connelly (Lab., Wigram), W. E. Cooper (Nat., Otago Central), M. F. Courtney (Lab., Nelson), M. B. Couch (Lab., Wairarapa), R. P. Drayton (Lab., St Albans), J. H. Elworthy (Nat., Oamaru), W. R. Fenton (Nat., Hastings), W T . A. Fraser (Lab., St Kilda), T. F. Gill (Nat., East Coast Bays), D. M. Jones (Nat., Waitemata), B. S. Lambert (Nat., Western Hutt), E. G. Latter (Nat., Marlborough), B. P. Macdonell (Lab.. Dunedin Central). C. C. A. McLachlan (Nat., Rakaia). A. G. Malcolm (Nat., Eden), R. D. Muldoon (Nat., Tamaki), J. G. O’Brien (independent, Island Bay), M. Rata (Lab., Northern Maori), P. B. Reweti (Lab., Eastern Maori), H. J. Walker (Nat., Papanui), G. A. Wall (Lab.. Porirua), M. L. Wellington (Nat., Manurewa), K. T. Wetere (Lab., Western Maori), V. S. Young ‘(Nat., Egmont), W. L. Young (Nat., Mirimari.