DECRIMINALISING ABORTION VS HUMAN LIFE

What does 'Decriminalisation of Abortion Mean'?
It is the removal of all reference to abortion from the Queensland Criminal Code, allowing abortion to be performed on any unborn child for "any" or "no" reason up until the child is born. In this situation there would be no legal safeguards in place to protect the lives of the unborn child or the pregnant mother.

What Would be the Impact for Queensland?
The real impact of the decriminalisation of abortion would be the removal of all legal protection for the nine months of life in the womb.

How would Queensland Rate in the World?
Decriminalisation of abortion would mean that Queensland would rank amongst the most permissive countries in the world.

What Would be Some of the Effects?
With no criminal law, abortion numbers would increase because people often equate the lack of criminal sanction with acceptable behaviour. The abortion industry would expand. Many more backyard and shopfront abortionists would appear. Abortion would become normal behaviour with no restraints.

Would the Decriminalisation of Abortion be an Act of Justice? No. By omission the law would be condoning the taking of the life of the most defenceless human in our society, and thereby place itself far away from natural justice and its basic principle, "that all human life is inherently valuable and must be protected by law".

In any society the law must protect the voiceless and the weak, and be seen to protect them.

What is the Value of the Provisions of the Queensland Criminal Code?
The Queensland Criminal Code has, in principle stated that the life of the child in the womb is worthy of protection. If abortion is removed from the Criminal Code, unborn Queensland babies and their mothers would lose this protection.

Is Unborn Human Life Worth of Protection?
Yes. The unborn human as a member of the human family is entitled to full legal protection.

We know more about unborn human life than ever before. Through photographs, scans and other technology we can actually ‘see’ into the womb and experience the life within. The unborn child can be treated as a patient, separate from his/her mother.

Now that we can clearly identify the new human, society should be considering how to increase legal protection for him/her.

How Would the Decriminalisation of Abortion Change our Society? Society exists to preserve itself and its individual members. Any law which condones the destruction of a member purely for convenience, erodes and attacks that society.
If abortion on demand was no longer illegal, the number of abortions would exceed the number of live births as in other societies with permissive abortion laws.

How Would 'Fathers' be Affected?
As in the current legal situation Fathers would have no rights in the protection of their unborn children.

How Would Hospitals be Affected?
If decriminalisation was accepted then it may be expected that abortions be carried out in hospitals. Hospitals may be asked to show cause why they would not perform abortions, thereby risking the loss of Government funding.

How Would Decriminaisation Affect Medical People?
Abortion without criminal sanction would lead to a hardening of society and in particular doctors, nurses and ancillary staff of our hospitals. Medical staff may find themselves refused employment if unwilling to perform or assist abortions. Many others would be traumatised and medical staff lost.

Isn't Abortion Another Medical Procedure?
No other medical procedure has as its explicit aim - the termination of another's life. The aim of medicine is to cure. Only those abortions performed to prevent the death of the mother could be called a medical procedure.

What is the View of Pro-lifers?
Pro-life people believe that abortion should not be decriminalised I because women deserve that the society in which they live would help them to examine and resolve their real problems. Assistance and support can be given in such a way that non-violent, true solutions are discovered in their time of crisis. Abortionists who break the law should be prosecuted - not the mothers.