There is a massive and disturbing discrepancy between the number of late term abortions reported by the Abortion Supervisory Committee [ASC] and the number reported by the Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee [PMMRC].
The ASC in its 2017 report to Parliament advised that there were 76 abortions post 20 weeks reported in 2016. The PMMRC advised in its 2017 report that there were 148 post 20 weeks reported for the 2016 calendar year. There is an unexplained difference of 72. This raises very important questions.
It is a statutory duty for abortionists in New Zealand to report all abortions to the ASC and in addition to report all post 20 week abortions to the PMMRC. Right to Life believes that the 72 abortions not reported to the ASC were done to hide the fact that these abortions were unlawful and that these unborn children were killed unlawfully. This is a crime against humanity.
The report of the PMMRC discloses that while the definitions used differ from those used by the ASC, 109 abortions were authorised for fetal abnormality defined as congenital abnormality. It may be assumed that abortionists advised the ASC that these abortions were authorised for other dubious reasons to hide the fact that they were killed on the grounds that the child had a congenital defect. According to the Crimes Act section 187A [3] it is unlawful to authorise an abortion post 20 week for fetal abnormality. All of these abortions were therefore, in the opinion of Right to Life, unlawful.
Right to Life wrote to the ASC on 5 October 2018 to express our Society’s concerns. The ASC responded on 9 November stating:-
The PMMRC reports on statistics it collects in its annual report. This information is collected differently to the ASC statistics and includes definitions that differ from the definition for abortion set out in the Contraception Sterilisation and Abortion Act 1977 [CS&A Act ].
The grounds on which abortions may be authorised are found in the Crimes Act 1961, not the CS& A Act. Right to Life rejects the defence of the ASC that the definitions are completely different. They are not; a fetal abnormality is a congenital abnormality.
Right to Life will now write to the Minister of Justice Andrew Little, the Minister responsible for the Crimes Act, requesting that he take urgent action to have the ASC uphold the law and to prevent the unlawful killing of defenceless unborn children of a gestational age of post 20 weeks and to ensure that all abortions are reported to the ASC.
Ken Orr
Spokesperson,
Right to Life
The question should be put to the PM; which opposition MP will have the courage to speak out?
Why do I have the sinking, horrible feeling that a significant proportion of those poor, aborted unborn children were labelled as possessing prenatal disabilities…? Perhaps because they are viewed as *particularly* expendable?
If these babies are being aborted specifically due to disability status, wouldn’t that be an offence under the Human Rights Act and Bill of Rights Act 1990’s disabled equality provisions? Just a thought…
Thanks Rhona,
We will look into this.