3 July 2011

Media Release

ALRANZ Source of Misinformation

The Abortion Law Reform Association of New Zealand [ALRANZ] issued a media release on 24 June 2011 that contains serious misinformation. It is important that the people of New Zealand are properly informed and that they are provided with factual information and not misinformation. This promotes an informed public debate on matters of great importance.

The right to life is the foundation of a civilised society. It is always wrong to kill the innocent and we all have a duty to protect the right to life of the weak and the defenceless. It is a matter of concern that ALRANZ is opposed to protecting the weak and the defenceless by refusing to recognise the unborn child as a member of the human family, endowed at conception with a right to life. ALRANZ by taking this position is in opposition to the findings of the Royal Commission which stated in its report to Parliament in 1977, that the unborn child was the weakest and most defenceless member of the human family and needed legal protection.

Why then is ALRANZ opposed to recognising unborn children as human beings, endowed with a right to life? The reason is that it would be repugnant to kill a human being before birth. To promote acceptance of killing another human being they must first deny the humanity of the child. The stance of ALRANZ is reminiscent of Nazi Germany which denied the humanity of Jews in order that they may carry out the Holocaust. Today ALRANZ like Nazi Germany denies the humanity of unborn children in order to justify the killing in the holocaust against our unborn.

ALRANZ claims that the " reproductive rights" of New Zealanders faced continued assault in the Courts. This assertion is false. The role of the judiciary is to clarify the meaning of legislation passed by Parliament. It is the prerogative of Parliament to enact legislation, not the Courts. The purpose of the Judicial Review of the Performance of the Abortion Supervisory Committee initiated by Right to Life in 2005 was not to change the law, but an effort to have the law upheld as was intended by Parliament. The "reproductive rights" claimed by ALRANZ includes a human right to kill an unborn child in the womb. There is no such right recognised in law or in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Why does ALRANZ not acknowledge that with rights come responsibilities? We have a duty to protect the weak and the defenceless unborn, not to kill them.

ALRANZ claims incorrectly that The Abortion Supervisory Committee has repeatedly over many years asked Parliament in its annual reports to decriminalise abortion. This assertion is false. The Committee has repeatedly warned in its reports that the "law is not being interpreted as Parliament intended". In 1988 the Committee alluded to the vast majority of abortions in New Zealand being, "pseudo-legal abortions performed on women with potentially normal pregnancies".

ALRANZ which has a national membership of 200 members does not represent the women of New Zealand. Neither is it in the best interests of women to promote the killing of unborn children to solve their problems. We should recognise that ALRANZ represents a culture of death. It's message is one of darkness and despair that is a mortal threat to the lives of unborn children and to the health and welfare of women who are the second victims of abortion.

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