Fight over abortion law change
TOWNSVILLE Catholic Bishop Tim Harris has called on local MPs to not back a move to decriminalise abortion.
In a letter forwarded to the Townsville Bulletin, Bishop Harris conveyed his “total opposition” to the proposed Bill, which would remove abortion from the Criminal Code.
Bishop Harris opposed the Bill and its contents “on the grounds that it once again appears that the rights of the child are not taken into consideration”.
“We speak about the rights of the mother, but the child seems to have none,” his letter reads.
“There is a disturbing trend in this country to devalue life from the beginning or in the womb, and even at the end of life where the sick and elderly are just as vulnerable.
“I belong to a group of people who believe in the dignity of every human being.”
Bishop Harris’s comments sparked a response from Pro Choice Queensland campaign co-ordinator Sine ad Canning.
“The position taken by the Bishop completely ignores a woman’s right to have agency over her own body,” Ms Can- ning said. “It also disregards the sometimes devastating reasons why a woman may choose to access an abortion: their own health being put in mortal danger, the violent circumstances surrounding conception or a fatal foetal abnormality.
“Termination of pregnancy is a health issue, not a religious issue and ultimately the decision should be made by the woman in consultation with her doctor.”
Bishop Harris said he’d already raised the issue with Catholics in the Townsville Diocese and many shared his concerns.
On behalf of them he asked MPs to “use your conscience to vote down the Bill and to speak courageously about your reasons”.
He hoped by writing to politicians he would encourage others to “speak up for the cause of life”.
Ms Canning said half of all pregnancies in Australia were unplanned and current law ignored the complexities of sit- uations people may find themselves in.
“More than one in four women will have an abortion in their lifetime,” she said.
She said criminalising abortions made them harder to access and led people to contemplate dangerous decisions to end a pregnancy.
Ms Canning said the proposed legislation would give certainty to health professionals and women.
She said successive polling had shown four out of five Queenslanders supported abortion law reform.
News Corp reported in February last year that a survey of 1201 adults by Fair Agenda found 82 per cent agreed abortion should be legal, provided a medical professional was consulted.
The survey found 60 per cent of respondents would be less likely to support an MP who wanted to keep abortion criminal.
Katter’s Australian Party MPs, including state leader Robbie Katter and Member for Hinchinbrook Nick Dametto, confirmed in mid- July they would be voting against decriminalising abortion.
The new laws would allow for women to request a termination from their doctor up to 22 weeks gestation.
WE SPEAK ABOUT THE RIGHTS OF THE MOTHER, BUT THE CHILD SEEMS TO HAVE NONE BISHOP TIM HARRIS