WHILE David Alton's bill to limit legal abortion to 18 weeks is meeting considerable opposition, there is a strong lobby urging support tor an amended version of the bill introducing a 24 week limit.
individuals organisations themselves 'pro-choice. They suggest that a reduction to 24 weeks is in line with advances in medical technology, inevitable, and will make virtually no difference to the present real, as opposed to technical, availability of legal abortion.
in the time limit will make a real impact on women's present rights to fertility control, and should be opposed.
MANY of those who will support a 24 week limit will so for purely tactical reasons, that is those people who are actually opposed to all will support any measure to imit its availability.
However, it' cannot be denied that a substantial proportion supporting the : week proposal do in fact consider themselves to be pro-choice.
They have been convinced to support the 24 week time limit by number of factors. Among these overwhelmingly the most important has been the view of the medical profession.
Choice Both the British Medical the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists have indicated their support Those supporting a 24 week limit include many which consider JUDE WOODWARD argues that any reduction arbitrary a point at which to DaVi that foetus has separate rights as any other sign of physical development. In fact it is ludicrous to discuss the matter in these terms. potential human life everely exists trom tne moment of conception.
This is not the issue, the real issue it whether or not a woman has to accept that this should develop inside CHUC develop inside her boay, and then be forced to take on all the emotional and physical responsibility for bringing a new human being into the world.
It doesn't matter at what point in the pregnancy occurs, 11 a woman decides that she no longer wishes a foetus to inhabit her body then the decision to end the pregnancy should be hers and no one else's.
Doctors also argue that The argument that a reduction in time limits to 24 weeks is inevitable and correct has also gained ground because of the results of two opinion polls which showed proportion of women tavour of a reduction in the time TOT legal abortion.
Two issues have to be taken into account when assessing the results of these opinion polls.
Firstly similar polls which have asked women whether they support the 1967 Abortion Act have received an incredibly high proportion of 'yes' Equally polls which have asked whether women are dissatisfied with the terms of the law have received a very high 'no response.
Secondly, while there is certain emotional response Walca can be men by the pictures culated by SPUC and Life of a much magnified week Joelus, which the responses in opinion polls reflect, when women asked about specific cases of late abortion their responses tend to be that each abortion should be allowed.
There is also xtrem hostility to the of criminalising either women or doctors for abortion at virtually any point. When the French courts tried to prosecute a 14 year old girl, who had been raped. tor a very late abortion • well beyond the present British legal limit - she was acquitted amid public outcry against prosecution.
The final argument for a reduction in the time limit to 24 weeks has been that it will make no real ditterence In 1986, it is pointed out, on v 2/ women nad abor tions carried out after the 24th week, and in virtually every one of these cases the operation could go ahead even under a coaced raw. due to the exceptions for oena aonormally.
But this is not the whole SLOV reduction in the time limit for legal abortion to 24 weeks. especially Ir the form of an amendment to the 1967 Abortion Act rather than to the Infant Life Preservation Act, wolle anec vituall abortions performed after WEEKS. anc Illali those performed after 20 WCCKS In the 20 years since the passing of the Abortion Act there have been a series of anti-abortionists to prosecute doctor for carrying abortion outside the framework of the 1967 Act. All these attempted have failed secutivis however doctors pertorming abortion are keenly aware of a powertul anti-abortion lobby, wellthe medical organised in profession at all levels, and quite willing to spy on doctors and exploit any opening to use the courts to stop abortions. Threat Under the terms of the present Intant Lite Preser vation Act abortion effectively becomes illegal when is considered that the foetus is capable of sustaining independent lite, unless the life of the mother However in the case of a doctor al. abortion later than the 28th week - for example if an error had been made as to the date of conception the onus would be on the that criminal abortion had taken place.
David Alton's amendment, because it would introduce a time limit into the Abortion Act itself, would make all abortion carried out after the legal time limit automatically a criminal offènce unless the doctor -woman herself could prove otherwise In order to be safe from take even more precautions than they now to ensure they did no accidentally place themselves in breach of the Evencode the present doctors generally carry out abortion the estimated 26th alici week of pregnancy. With a 24 week limit written into the Abortion Act itself doc LUIS would protect themselves by imposing ar actual limit of 20 to weeks. Help Rather than 27 women this would affect 2/3000 women who presently have legal abortions each year Of these a high proportion will be women in areas where the local consultants are anti-abortion, therefore forcing women to eventually seek help in other parts of the country. Other r women most affected will be young women who do not know i 01 admit they pregnant older women who mistake the signs of pregnancy for the women from Ireland who are forced to travel to Britain because abortion is still illegal north and south.
have a late abortion. No wallall wants While the anti-abortionists' cant about post-abortion trauma in tne mst lour months Is se much rubbish, abortion aren to weeks is all unpica sant and distressing opera • LOU Women have late abortions because they real need, because it is the only reasonable choice the! can make, and they have the right to make that choice Any reaucuon lil the bre sent legal time limit for abortion will seriously affect many thousands of women's lives over the coming years eat res there call complacency.
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ABORTION CAMPAGN