LABOR HAS LEGALISED ABORTION UP TO BIRTH FOR ANY REASON

The Queensland Labor Government legalised abortion up to birth for any reason in 2018 via the extreme Termination of Pregnancy Act (2018).

When these laws passed on 17 October, 2018, by 50 votes to 41 votes, Labor MPs celebrated. Please see below video.



Find out how your MP voted by clicking here.


Queensland's abortion laws are particularly brutal. Aspects include:

Full-term abortion is legal

Even a healthy late-term baby of a healthy mother can be aborted in Queensland.
(But only 5% of Queenslanders agree with abortion right up to birth)*



Babies born alive in failed abortions are left to die

(But only 10% of Queenslanders think babies born alive in failed abortions should be left to die)*



Sex-selective abortion is legal

This brutal practice nearly always discriminates against female babies.
(But 83% of Queenslanders are opposed to sex-selective abortion)*



Anti-woman abortion laws

Women considering abortion have no practical supports like the offer of counselling and no checks against abortion coercion.
(But 88% of Queenslanders think women considering abortion should be offered counseling)*



Doctors' rights ignored

Doctors with a conscientious objection to abortion are forced to refer for abortion against their own conscience.
(But 74% of Queenslanders agree with a doctor's right to a full conscientious objection to abortion)*



* QUEENSLANDERS' VIEWS ON ABORTION



EXTREME & UNNECESSARY

Prior to the law change there were already around 14,000 abortions a year in Queensland, so there was no "need" to change the law for "accessibility to abortion". Instead, Labor's laws ushered in some of the most dangerous and extreme abortion-to-birth laws in the world - which removed all legal protection from unborn human beings (even full term babies), and did nothing to support or protect pregnant women and girls who may be in vulnerable situations.

At the time of the debate, in October 2018, the Labor Government even voted against amendments which included:


MORE BABIES WOULD DIE UNDER ANOTHER LABOR GOVERNMENT & HERE'S WHY

1. The Queensland Labor Government has legalised abortion up to birth for any reason. All restraint from abortion has been removed in Queensland

The Termination of Pregnancy Act has no effective gestational limit on terminations.
It legalised abortion up to birth in Queensland, effectively for any reason.

The first part of the legalisation legalised abortion upon request (no questions asked) up to 22 weeks. In doing so it sanctioned the destruction of fully formed little humans on the brink of viability. In fact, some premature babies overseas have survived at 22 weeks gestation with high care.

Then from 22 weeks gestation until birth abortion is legal (refer to section 6 of the Act), under expanded and loose criteria including "current and future physical, psychological and social circumstances"*, with the approval of two doctors. However there is no requirement for the second doctor to see the patient or even look at her file, the approval could merely be an email or phone call. If no second opinion is sought, there is no legal penalty. There is no requirement for independence of the second approving doctor - both doctors could be abortionists for example.

*"physical, psychological and social circumstances" is notably loose criteria for obtaining an abortion from 22 weeks up until birth. The Queensland Law Commission briefing paper accompanying the Termination of Pregnancy Bill explained that "social circumstances" also includes relationship breakdown or economic troubles. So physical, psychological, social, economic and relational circumstances essentially covers every part of human life. So the Queensland Labor government has legalised abortion up to birth for any reason.

Before the law changed in 2018, abortions was were legal in Queensland up to about 20 weeks gestation if there was a serious risk to a woman's physical or psychological health, abortions could be obtained passed that time for fatal abnormalities or if the mother's health was in serious risk.

2. Victoria's law change has lead to an almost 50% annual average increase in late-term abortions.

The Queensland Act is modelled on the Victorian Abortion Law Reform Act 2018 which has resulted in a 48% increase in late-term abortions in Victoria over 10 years (please see below table) since the law was changed in 2008, compared with the 9 years beforehand. Furthermore, almost half of late-term abortions in Victoria over recent years have been for "psycho-social" reasons. These are the abortions of healthy babies of healthy mothers.

Source: Real Choices Australia


LATE-TERM HEALTHY BABIES OF HEALTHY MOTHERS BEING ABORTED IN VICTORIA

2011 in Victoria, a healthy baby of a healthy mother was aborted for "psycho-social" reasons at over 37 weeks gestation - this is regarded as a full-term baby.

In that same year, 10 healthy viable babies of healthy mothers between 28 and 31 weeks gestation also were aborted for "psycho-social" reasons in Victoria.

GESTATIONAL AGES OF LATE-TERM ABORTED HEALTHY BABIES TO HEALTHY MOTHERS

Gestational ranges of perinatal deaths (VICTORIA) from 2009-2015 for maternal psycho-social indications only - non-medical reasons, healthy babies to healthy mothers.

Year 20-27 weeks 28-31 weeks 32-36 weeks 37+ weeks
2015 107 0 0 0
2014 146 0 1 0
2013 179 0 0 0
2012 132 0 0 0
2011 172 10 0 1
2010 184 7 0 0
2009 203 11 0 0

From Victorian Maternal, Perinatal, Child and Adolescent Mortality statistics,
The Consultative Council on Obstetric and Paediatric Mortality and Morbidity

Please note that none of these babies were anesthetised, as this was one of the amendments voted down when the Victorian Abortion Reform Act was passed in 2008



WHAT CAN BE DONE?

While the Queensland Labor Government, with the support of Greens, is strongly to committed to open slather abortion laws, the Liberal National Party, Katter's Australian Party and One Nation Party have all commited to review these extreme laws. So there's hope.
Here's what they propose:

LNP proof
KAP proof
ONP proof



So please, this election:




MEDIA REFERENCES

Abortion Legislation Announcement, ABC Report, 16 July 2018



Discussion of Labor's full term abortion Bill, Channel 7, 17 August, 2018



Rally against Abortion Laws, 1 September, 2018




Labor's Abortion Bill is ideology dressed up as health care:
The Courier Mail, 15 October, 2018


Passing of the Abortion Bill, 17 October, 2018




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