Face of Nation : Church ministers who support a bill to decriminalise abortion in NSW will front an inquiry into the draft laws, a day after fellow religious leaders gave evidence against the bill.
Newcastle’s Anglican bishop Peter Stuart and Pitt St Uniting Church minister Margaret Mayman will be among those appearing before Thursday’s hearing into the Reproductive Health Care Reform Bill. Both have publicly given their support for the decriminalisation of abortion.
The private members’ bill, which passed the lower house last week, allows terminations up to 22 weeks as well as for later abortions if two doctors considering all the circumstances agree the termination should occur. Representatives from the NSW Pro-Choice Alliance, the Australian Medical Association, and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists will also give evidence on Thursday.
Sydney’s Catholic and Anglican archbishops appeared before Wednesday’s hearing, along with religious leaders from the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Maronite Catholic Church and the Rabbinical Council of Australia. Anglican Archbishop Glenn Davies said he didn’t have an issue with decriminalising abortion but suggested the bill would “open the floodgates for abortion for any reason whatsoever”.
Catholic Archbishop Anthony Fisher said it makes sense that abortion remains in the Crimes Act as a statement that “we do value human life in its origins and right up to birth and mothers when they’re pregnant”.
The hearing was told church leaders had met on Sunday and agreed to push for a six-month delay to the final vote on the bill to allow more consultation. Thousands of people have made submissions to the upper house committee examining the private members’ bill since Friday, the hearing was told.
