Thursday 4 September 2008

The Ad Hoc Interfaith Committee has sent an open letter to Victorian MP's regarding the proposed abortion legislation. Read the letter below.

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We, the undersigned share grave concerns about the Abortion Law Reform Bill 2008. We acknowledge the deeply conflicted and vulnerable state of many women struggling with unexpected pregnancy who feel that they have no option except to choose an abortion. But as a matter of human solidarity with the unborn and with women, we are opposed on moral grounds to abortion as the taking of innocent and vulnerable human life. We oppose abortion on demand, that is the destruction of nascent human life without limits, for which the Bill provides.

We also believe that this Bill is not in the best interests of women and does not adequately protect them.

The Bill does not reflect community concern about the frequency of abortion and about late term abortion.  It is more liberal than current practice, and it would be likely to increase the rate of abortion. 

The Bill does not provide for scrutiny of abortion providers or require them to have the capacity to deal with unforeseen complications of the procedure such as severe haemorrhage. Most terminations of pregnancy take place in private facilities and current regulations require no more of abortion facilities than of day centres, where minor procedures such as the removal of skin lesions are undertaken. The Bill does not protect women by requiring abortion providers to have adequate, specified medical standards, facilities and protocols, including a professional social work department. 

The Bill does not protect young women and those with impaired capacity who have been abused. It does not specify how these women are to be protected when they are pregnant and possibly brought to an abortion clinic by the very person who has abused them. The Bill does not make clear how it is to be applied in relation to the current provisions of the Family Law and Guardianship and Administration Law. It also does not make clear any obligations of abortion providers to report a pregnancy as evidence of a crime of sexual abuse.

The Bill does not provide for independent supportive counselling or cooling off periods, which in other areas of the law, such as reproductive technology and even buying a house or car, is considered to be protective.  While mandatory counselling would be contrary to the nature of counselling, we believe that a woman who is in difficulty with pregnancy ought to be offered the option of client-centred non-directive counselling to provide emotional support and assistance to explore all her options and make a thoughtful and informed decision. She should always be offered the option of ongoing advice and support regardless of the decisions that she makes.

The Bill lacks a no disadvantage conscientious objection clause such as we find in the National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines contain such clauses as: 
‘Those who conscientiously object to being involved in conducting research with separated foetuses or foetal tissue should not be compelled to participate, nor should they be put at a disadvantage because of their objection.’
Instead, the Bill requires referral for abortion by doctors, nurses, pharmacists and psychiatrists.  If one regards abortion as immoral, one cannot also refer for abortion.

Nurses have a particular problem because they would be “under a duty to assist” in a late term abortion, if a doctor requests and claims that it is an emergency.  Doctors at least can exercise their discretion that late term abortion is never medically necessary.  Attempting live birth is a safer option if the woman’s life is in danger.  Late abortion necessarily involves an additional procedure such as fatal injection to the child in utero or destruction of the brain during delivery.  Under the Bill nurses are not permitted to object even though doctors can.

At no stage were the Victorian Law Reform Commission’s recommendations subjected to the scrutiny of public consultation. Given the significance of the issue, and strong feelings and opinions in the community, policy development in this area should be much more responsive to the community's views - at least as responsive as, for example, the National Health and Medical Research Council which is required by statute to undertake a multi-stage process of public consultation when it prepares documents of social and ethical significance.  

The VLRC appears to have dismissed both concerns about respect for human life and concerns for the welfare of women. Apart from the further actual destruction of nascent life, which this Bill facilitates, it delivers to generations an educative message, which undermines the protection of life and fails to support women at a time of need.

Yours sincerely,

Rev’d Dr Gordon Preece,
Executive Director Urban Seed;
Adjunct Lecturer in Ethics, Ridley College,
Bible College of Victoria, Otago University.

Dr Denise Cooper-Clarke
Adjunct Lecturer, Ridley Melbourne Mission and Ministry College

Rev. Megan Curlis-Gibson
St Hilary’s Anglican Church , Kew

Archbishop Dr Philip Freier
Anglican Church of Melbourne

Mark Conner
Senior Minister of CityLife Church

Most Rev Denis J Hart DD
Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne

Most Rev Christopher Prowse
Auxiliary Bishop, Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne

A/Prof Nicholas Tonti-Filippini
Associate Dean, JPII Institute for Marriage and Family, Melbourne

Marcia Riordan
Respect Life Office, Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne

Peter Stevens
Victorian State Officer
FamilyVoice Australia

Arthur Cherrie
CEO, Casey Pastors Network

Graham Nelson
Senior Minister- Life Ministry Centre

Metropolitan Paul Saliba
Primate of the Antiochian Archdiocese of Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines

Metropolitan Archbishop Hilarion Kapral
Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia

Very Rev Dr Michael Protopopov
Dean –Russian Orthodox Church in Australia

Dale Stephenson
Senior Pastor Crossway Baptist Church

Rt Rev Graham Bradbeer,
Moderator, Presbyterian Church of Victoria

Rev John Wilson,
Clerk of the General Assembly, Presbyterian Church of Victoria

Rev David Palmer
Convener, Church & Nation Committee,
Presbyterian Church of Victoria

Rob Ward
Victoria State Director
Australian Christian Lobby

Mrs Kathy James,
Convener, Health & Chaplaincy Committee,
Presbyterian Church of Victoria

Rev Fr Geoff Harvey
Priest of the Good Shepherd Antiochian Orthodox
Mission, based at Monash University

Jim Zubic
President of the Orthodox Chaplaincy Association

Rev. Fr James Grant SSC
Chaplains Without Borders
Melbourne Anglican Diocese

Peter McHugh
Senior Minister Christian City Church Whitehorse

Dr Rosalie Hudson
Consultant Nurse Educator

Rev Ross Carter,
Congregation of Paul the Apostle
South Port Uniting Church

Bishop Suriel
Coptic Bishop of Melbourne

Dr Adam Cooper
Senior Lecturer, John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family Melbourne

Pete Buckley
Chairman Whitehorse Pastors Network

Dr Allan Meyer
Senior Minister Careforce Church Mt Evelyn

Rev Rob Isaachsen
Coordinator
Transforming Melbourne

Dr Max Champion
National Chair of the Assembly of Confessing Congregations within the Uniting Church.

Dr Justin Denholm
Infectious Diseases Registrar, Alfred Hospital and Co-ordinator, Centre for Applied Christian Ethics, Ridley Melbourne

Rev Greg Pietsch
President, Victorian/ Tasmanian District, Lutheran Church of Australia

Marlene Pietsch
Lutheran Church of Australia.

Fr Iskandar Aphrem
Syrian Orthodox Church

The Right Rev Stephen J Hale
Bishop of the Eastern Region
Anglican Diocese of Melbourne

Pastor Gordon Wegener, Pastor for Service and Witness
Lutheran Church, Victorian District