17 May 2011

Media Release

Parental Notification

Right to Life is opposed to school counsellors and members of the Family Planning Association smuggling young girls under the age of 16 years of age out of school for a secret abortion. In doing so they may be hiding statutory rape or incest. This is an appalling violation of parental rights and a breach of trust. It is a sad irony that a school requires the written consent of the parents for permission to attend a school trip or to be given an asprin, yet may smuggle her away for an abortion without her parents' knowledge or consent.

Right to Life fully supports parents and has been lobbying Parliament since 1977 for the right of parents to be notified of an abortion on a girl under the age of 16 years of age as a prelude to the legal recognition of the right of parents to withhold consent.

To deny parents the opportunity to be informed of an abortion on a daughter under the age of 16, risks or perpetuates estrangement or alienation from the child when she is in the greatest need of parental guidance and support and denies all dignity to the family.

An abortion constitutes an assault on the body of a young and vulnerable young girl, it is also a lethal attack on a helpless and defenceless unborn child. Young girls facing the trauma of an unplanned pregnancy have a right to the love and protection of their families. The unborn child is also a member of the family, it has an inalienable right to life and has a fundamental right to the love and protection of the girl's parents; they are, in fact, the child's grandparents.

Public opinion polls conducted in New Zealand have consistently revealed 80 per cent support for parental notification. There are 35 States in the United States that have parental consent or parental notification laws. A total of 22 States have parental consent laws and 12 that have parental notification laws. Many of the States require the written consent of both parents, the age of consent is 18 years of age. The parental consent and notification laws have resulted in a decline in teenage pregnancies and a15 per cent decline in teenage abortions.

In the 2004, contentious Parliamentary debate on the Care of Children Bill, amendments to provide for parental notification were defeated because of the vociferous opposition of the Family Planning Association. The shameful defeat of these amendments reinforced the politically correct myth that doctors, school counselors and Family Planning staff know what's best for our children and can arrange for an abortion on a young girl without the knowledge or consent of the parents.

This is an important social justice issue, Parental notification is not an abortion issue, it is a family rights issue. This is an election year, Right to Life encourages the community to ensure that parental notification becomes an important election issue. It is time that the government listened to the people and amended the Care of Children Act 2004 to provide for parental notification. Ultimately, only parental consent laws will give proper recognition to the rights of families.

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