Public want a legal framework to have the final say on ethics of abortion
Dr Calum Mackellar reports on the minefield of conflicting opinions over a procedure on demand and the right to life
Different campaigns have recently been initiated in the UK seeking to completely decriminalise abortion.
In England and Wales, this would mean repealing the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, which makes it a crime to intentionally procure a miscarriage or provide substances for the purposes of abortion.
In Scotland, because abortion remained a common law offence, decriminalisation would require new legislation. Since abortion was devolved under the Scotland Act 2016, this would have to be considered by the Scottish Parliament.
That abortion remains an offence may come as a surprise to many. It has become relatively common after the Abortion Act 1967, which also covers Scotland. But this legislation only seeks to address the conflict of interests between a woman and the foetus. It does not decriminalise abortion. Doctors are not prosecuted if they follow specific legal requirements.
Those campaigning for a decriminalisation of abortion argue, amongst other reasons, that the restrictions and penalties only add to its stigma and are too severe to women in a modern society.
Instead, they suggest that abortion should be removed completely from criminal law and be treated no differently to any other medical procedure, available on demand. In other words, supporters of the campaign indicate that rigorous abortion regulations restrict a woman’s reproductive choices and her ability to make her own autonomous decisions.
Autonomy and bodily integrity is very important in medical ethics. But agreeing to the absolute autonomy of a person is another matter, especially when other individuals are present.
Those seeking to decriminalise abortion seem to overlook the reality that it always involves at least two human beings. The pregnant woman and the foetus have never been considered in law as having no moral status – a position that has not changed over the past centuries. Despite a growing scientific understanding of life both before and after birth, moral status has never just been reduced to aspects of size or self-awareness.
Certainly, a society can believe that the value of a human pre-natal or post-natal life is purely subjective and that the concept of inherent human worth is empty of meaning. In this case, it may be possible to accept that the only concept which really is that of autonomy. Thus, an individual should always respect the autonomy of those who are selfaware and rational because he or she wants his or her autonomy to be respected by them in return.
But such a social contract does not really give any solid protection to those with less or no autonomy. Those who are strong with a robust sense of control may, for example, begin to believe that they no longer need such a social contract for their autonomy to be respected. These controlling individuals may then impose their autonomy on the weak and vulnerable.
If abortion was ever decriminalised because it is believed that the autonomy of some should be respected to the detriment of others, who are incapable of being autonomous, it would imply that human life has no inherent value as such. In other words, individuals before and after birth only have worth if they have certain abilities. However, such a position would eventually undermine the basis of a compassionate civilised society. Such a society could no longer offer solid arguments against ending the lives of any other non-autonomous individuals who may be considered as having an inferior claim to life.
If the Scottish Parliament accepts that some lives can have less or no claim to life just because they are not autonomous, it would endan- ger the concept of equality in society as well as the foundations on which Parliament is built. Campaigns for the decriminalisation of abortion, therefore, cannot just base their arguments on the absolute autonomy of women who want the procedure. When a conflict of interest aris-
es between a right to autonomy of the woman and a right to life of the foetus, the only way forward must be a settlement through legislation.
Public opinion seems to reflect this. In a Comres poll from October last year, 71 per cent of those surveyed in Scotland indicated that abortion should be governed by legislation with only 16 per cent opposing such a stance. This shows that the Scottish public does not want abortion to operate outside of a legal framework. Dr Calum Mackellar, director of research of the Scottish Council on Human Bioethics.