Calls are regularly made by various lobby groups in the UN and the EU for worldwide availability of abortion to protect maternal mortality. They suggest that abortion is necessary to save the lives of mothers. They regularly use statistics about maternal mortality suggesting that up to half a million women die each year during pregnancy or child birth. However a new study says that the number is significantly less. See the story below for more details.
http://www.c-fam.org/publications/id.1610/pub_detail.asp
Even if the new statistics are accurate it is still socking that so many women die during pregnancy or child birth. But is widespread availability of abortion the answer?
The Republic of Ireland (where abortion is illegal) has the lowest maternal mortality rate in the world. This fact alone would suggest that abortion does nothing to alter the maternal mortality rate. Is it not possible that the number of women dying during pregnancy is due to lacking medical facilities? And is it not then ridiculous to suggest putting money into abortion facilities rather than ones which can help people to be pregnant and give birth safely?
It appears that people wish to make their own views on abortion (as one of autonomy of the mother) heard through the medium of the developing countries. It does a grave disservice to the mothers in these countries to present them with abortion facilities but dent them basic facilities for giving birth.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
'Human Rights China - Babies bodies found in river
As highlighted on SKY News last week, the bodies of 21 babies, believed dumped by hospitals, recently washed ashore on a riverbank in eastern China.
Video footage showed that the bodies "stashed in yellow plastic bags, at least one of which was marked 'medical waste'" included some infants several months old.
Some wore identification tags with their mothers' names, birth dates, measurements and weights. The official Xinhua News Agency said there were also female unborn babies among the bodies.
While this particular incident made the news the story itself is not entirely surprising given the imposition in China of the one-child policy which results in 13 million babies being aborted annually. As the recent cover story in The Economist magazine pointed out, the practice of gendercide or female foeticide means that female children are targeted both before and after birth through abortion, infanticide or neglect.
In addition to the massive human rights violations involved in ending the lives of children born and unborn the specific targeting of female babies has also created a huge gender imbalance where there are more unmarried young men in China than the entire population of young men in America.
It is incumbent therefore on pro-life groups to continue to pressure the Irish government to adopt a more robust stand in opposition to human rights abuses in China.'
Story taken from www.prolifecampaign.ie for full story see:
http://www.prolifecampaign.ie/pages.php?id=109
As highlighted on SKY News last week, the bodies of 21 babies, believed dumped by hospitals, recently washed ashore on a riverbank in eastern China.
Video footage showed that the bodies "stashed in yellow plastic bags, at least one of which was marked 'medical waste'" included some infants several months old.
Some wore identification tags with their mothers' names, birth dates, measurements and weights. The official Xinhua News Agency said there were also female unborn babies among the bodies.
While this particular incident made the news the story itself is not entirely surprising given the imposition in China of the one-child policy which results in 13 million babies being aborted annually. As the recent cover story in The Economist magazine pointed out, the practice of gendercide or female foeticide means that female children are targeted both before and after birth through abortion, infanticide or neglect.
In addition to the massive human rights violations involved in ending the lives of children born and unborn the specific targeting of female babies has also created a huge gender imbalance where there are more unmarried young men in China than the entire population of young men in America.
It is incumbent therefore on pro-life groups to continue to pressure the Irish government to adopt a more robust stand in opposition to human rights abuses in China.'
Story taken from www.prolifecampaign.ie for full story see:
http://www.prolifecampaign.ie/pages.php?id=109
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Welcome
Welcome to my new blog. Please stay tuned for what will hopefully be a reasonable debate on life related issues. Its about time we stopped listening to sound bites and discussed the reality of the issues.
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