Changes upset both sides

Press, 21 October 1989, Page 10

Changes upset both sides

By

PAM MORTON

Pro-abortion groups have hit out at proposed changes to the Contraception, Sterilisation and Abortion Act as tokenism to women, while the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child says the legislation paves the way for abortion on request. One of the more outspoken pro-abortion groups, the Women’s National Abortion Action Campaign, has called for the Minister of Women’s Affairs, Mrs Shields, to be sacked for failing to promote women’s demands for fertility control. A spokeswoman for the group, Ms Di Cleary, said the group had asked for Mrs Shields to be sacked before the amendment bill was introduced to Parliament on Thursday evening. “We still stand by that because the bill does very little on the abortion situation.

“It was up to the Minister to make sure we got a much better bill.”

Ms Cleary said the 1987 manifesto had promised a review of the grounds under which an abortion could be legally obtained.

“Those promises have not been held to.”

The whole thing was “too little, too late,” she said.

“It is a tokenism to make women think something has happened when it hasn’t.” That view has been supported by the Abortion Law Reform Association.

A spokeswoman for the association, Ms Pat Syme, said the Government was tinkering with bad legislation. “We wanted it to go a lot further to top up the system. It should be a woman’s choice to decide who she goes to.” Ms Syme said the changes could still be a barrier to women in the rural areas.

“It might make it easier on the women to get the piece of paper but it doesn’t make it any easier

to get an abortion if there are no facilities.” Women in areas such as the West Coast would still have to travel to Christchurch to have an abortion.

Ms Syme said enabling those under 16 to get contraceptives was great news but should have happened long ago. “It is only really because of the A.I.D.S. scare that people think something should be done about it.

“It is quite ridiculous in this day and age to say those under 16 should not have any information.”

The Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child believes the amendment paves the way to liberalising abortion procedures. The society’s national manager, Mr Barney Bone, said many New Zealanders had been shocked to find that 10,044 abortions were performed in New Zealand last year. Mr Bone said many groups were talking about pro-choice but pro-choice meant choosing the death of a child.

The legislation was leading towards abortion on request, he said.

S.P.U.C. branches and members will be encouraged to lobby their members of Parliament to stop the legislation being passed. The New Zealand Family Planning Association has welcomed moves by the Government to lower the age at which contraceptive advice and contraceptives can be given.

The association is one of the few exempt groups that has been legally able to give advice to those under 16. The medical director at the Christchurch Family Planning Centre, Dr Sue Bagshaw, said she was pleased to see the freeing up of information to young people about contraceptives. She said the change would go a long way to reducing abortions among teenagers.