Australia’s leading sexual and reproductive healthcare organisation today urged the Queensland Government to review current abortion laws, following a Queensland teenager being charged with causing her own miscarriage.
“The recent conviction of a Queensland teenager for organising her own abortion really is archaic and should not be happening in this day and age,” said Jill Michelson from Marie Stopes International. “A woman’s right to choose the spacing and timing of her family has been internationally recognised as a human right since the 1960s, yet we seem to be punishing this poor girl for exercising her right. “The case is just further proof of the need to urgently review Queensland’s abortion laws and remove abortion from the criminal code once and for all.
“The retention of abortion in the state criminal code stigmatises women and couples who choose it, reducing their access to accurate information and their willingness to seek timely support.
“In 2002, abortion was repealed from the Crimes Act in the ACT, and last year the law in Victoria was successfully reformed for women. “It is time Queensland and the rest of Australia follows.”
The Australian Survey of Social Attitudes 2003, conducted by the Centre for Social Research at the ANU, found that over 80% of Australians agree with a women’s right to choose an abortion.
A 2004 study looking at the views of 2,500 GPs - General Practitioners: Attitudes to Abortion[1] also found that 84% of GPs support access to abortion services for all women.
“These statistics show that there is overwhelming support in the community for a woman’s right to choose abortion,” Ms Michelson said. “It is therefore vital that our politicians represent the beliefs of the majority of their constituents and remove the risk of prosecution against women seeking an abortion and their doctors. “We urge all MPs to work together to decriminalise abortion in Queensland and to rectify the intolerable situation the teenager finds herself in.”
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About Marie Stopes International: Marie Stopes International is a not-for-profit sexual and reproductive healthcare provider, with centres in the ACT, VIC, NSW, QLD and WA. MSI offers a range of services, including abortion, vasectomy, sexually transmitted infection check-ups, contraception and community-based health promotion and education. The organisation is part of a global international partnership that delivers vital health services to over five million people in 42 countries worldwide. Surplus funds support Marie Stopes International Australia, our charity partner, which works to save lives and improve sexual and reproductive health in Indigenous Australia and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
For media enquiries contact: Kath Markov, Public Relations - 0421 097 150
[1] Commissioned by Marie Stopes International and conducted by Quantum Market Research. The findings were based on surveys completed by 2,500 GPs nationally in July 2004.
