Abortion right key to woman’s dignity

THE EDITOR, Sir:

THE ARGUMENT against abortion is a moral perspective that is subject to personal interpretation and, as such, cannot be the sole basis of legislation.

Those who see abortion as morally allowable should be provided with the means to do so, while those who don’t believe in abortion should have the choice not to be forced to undergo one. Oftentimes, the Church plays a major role in whether or not someone is in the right frame of mind to make their own personal decisions; but why should a woman have to consult her pastor before making the decision of getting an abortion?

A foetus is not legally or scientifically a person or human being, so abortion cannot be equated to murder or the taking of life since the foetus is neither a person nor a life.

The Offences Against the Person Act criminalises abortion in all circumstances. For a young girl with a dream of becoming a physician, but who is raped by her uncle, she is forced by the laws that govern this land to carry that child. What provisions are being made for unwanted and unplanned pregnancies?

A woman’s right to decide what is happening to, and within, her body is a fundamental part of her right to dignity and privacy. The State should not have the authority to limit her choices. BARRINGTON WALSH JR orlandowalsh1@gmail.com