Right to Life is disappointed that Telecom New Zealand has been supporting a culture of death by making annual grants to the New Zealand Family Planning Association of $50,000 for 2006 and 2007.

Right to Life is totally opposed to grants being made to this controversial Association. We know that the Family Planning Association is strongly pro-abortion. The Association is the major abortion referral agency in New Zealand; it believes that we need abortion as a back up for so called failed contraceptives. It supports girls under the age of 16 being able to have an abortion without the knowledge or consent of parents and has an employment policy to employ only doctors who believe that abortion is for a woman to choose in consultation with a doctor of her choice. This is abortion on demand which is unlawful in New Zealand. Justice Miller in the High Court Judicial Review of the performance of the Abortion Supervisory Committee, stated in his judgment in June 2008, that abortion on demand was unlawful and that “there is reason to doubt the lawfulness of many abortions authorised by certifying consultants.” Many doctors employed by Family Planning are certifying consultants.

The Family Planning Association has publicly stated that it is its intention to apply to the Abortion supervisory Committee for an abortion licence for each of its 30 clinics in New Zealand. In July the Association applied to the Committee for an abortion licence for its Hamilton clinic. Our Society will vigorously oppose this and future applications for an abortion licence. An abortion licence is in effect a licence to kill.

Telecom New Zealand has an enviable reputation for integrity and service to the community. Right to Life commends the Corporation for providing grants to many organisations that promote the common good. Right to Life wrote to Telecom expressing our Society’s opposition to the grants to the Family Planning Association which promotes a culture of death. The Head of Corporate & Social Responsibility for Telecom responded that they were not prepared to enter into a debate on the issues that we raised. For the Corporation to continue to provide annual grants to the Association that intends to operate 30 abortion clinics in New Zealand, would be deplorable and damaging to Telecom’s reputation and attraction as the main telecom service provider in New Zealand.

We request that in the interest of protecting the reputation of Telecom and the lives of unborn New Zealanders and the health and welfare of vulnerable women that they terminate grants to the Family Planning Association.

In the event that Telecom persists in making these grants to Family Planning, which support the killing of unborn children, Right to Life would encourage concerned citizens to change their service provider and would actively encourage our members and supporters to take similar action.

Ken Orr

Spokesperson,

Right to Life New Zealand Inc.