No apology for emotive views on abortion

This is my second attempt to write this letter, the first one deemed unsuitable for a family newspaper, as my description of an actual abortion was considered to be too graphic. Readers would be ‘distressed to read such unpleasant detail’. I can tell you that abortion at 24 weeks’ gestation would be much worse than ‘unpleasant’.

I had quoted from a book by Abby Johnson called Unplanned, where she describes an actual abortion of 12 weeks’ gestation that she’d attended. It was quite horrific to say the least, and was life-changing for Abby. There’s enough in the first few pages to give the reader an insight should they wish to consult this book.

The purpose of this letter is to express one or two of my objections to changing the law to allow an abortion up to 24 weeks.

A frequently used argument for abortion is when a baby is not developing properly, would be severely handicapped and would not be expected to live for long after birth. I would argue that in this case, both mother and child need even more care so that at birth, the mother or parents can hold their baby and then grieve properly at their loss. Many of us have heard about women who were advised to have abortions, only to give birth to perfectly healthy babies.

Another argument often put forward is about what to do in the case of rape or incest. In this situation, ending a life is seen as solving a problem, but this is only dealing with the result and not the cause. From the moment a woman knows she is pregnant, there is new life in her womb and that pregnancy can never be ignored or forgotten; it becomes part of her life story.

Many people claim that a foetus doesn’t feel pain until the third trimester. This can’t be proven, but some evidence suggests that a 12-week foetus does feel pain. Besides, it’s irrelevant whether an unborn child can feel pain. At 24 weeks, the baby is viable. Under the new modern law, aborting a baby at 24 weeks would be legal and no one would have committed an offence, but give birth a few weeks later to a live child, albeit premature and fighting for its life.

This is an emotive issue and therefore requires an emotive response, and I make no apology for speaking bluntly.

GERALDINE HIGGS

Address withheld.