The issue of abortion is controversial and topical in the USA. According to Christian News Network published today, “A sweeping abortion bill that recently passed the Kansas House of Representatives also cleared the state Senate Friday night, and now heads to the desk of Governor Sam Brownback for signing. In a vote of 90-30, Kansas senators approved the legislation, which among other regulations, declares that life begins at conception”
“The legislature hereby finds and declares the following: (1) The life of each human being begins at fertilization; (2) unborn children have interests in life, health and well-being that should be protected; and (3) the parents of unborn children have protectable interests in the life, health and well-being of the unborn children of such parents.”
Furthermore, Christian News Network goes on to say that abortionists will not have tax breaks. Doctors- in-training will not be allowed to perform abortions on state time. ” A third requires that all abortionists notify women of the risks associated with having an abortion, as well as the facts about fetal development. Sex-selection abortions are also prohibited by the legislation.”
The site goes on to say, “No school district shall permit any person or entity to offer, sponsor or otherwise furnish in any manner any course materials or instruction relating to human sexuality or sexually transmitted diseases if such person or entity is an abortion services provider, or an employee, agent or volunteer of an abortion services provider,” it outlines.
“This fulfills the legislative intent to create a pro-life state,” Kansans for Life director Kathy Ostrowski told reporters.”
Different states have imposed their own laws on abortion. However, the situation is quite different in Canada. According to AbortioninCanada.ca, The Canadian governed passed an abortion bill in 1969 to allow abortions where the mother’s health was in jeopardy. The law was not very clear on what health factors must be accounted for.
Then-Justice Minister Pierre Trudeau introduced a bill to amend Section 251 of the Criminal Code of Canada, which provided for abortions where the health of the woman was deemed at risk by a therapeutic abortion committee consisting of three doctors. Under the amendment abortions could only be performed in accredited hospitals by licensed physicians. All other abortions were still subject to the Criminal Code sanctions. Abortion remained in the Criminal Code as a criminal offence outside of the described circumstances.
The controversy continued as some hospitals did not follow the rules and even the justice ministers did not agree. “The Mulroney government introduced a bill in 1989 to restrict abortions to those required for health reasons with maximum jail sentences of two years for doctors who violated the law. The bill passed in the House of Commons but died on a tie vote in the Senate. Since then, abortion has been unrestricted in Canada, legal through all nine months of pregnancy up until the point of birth. Most abortions are funded by taxpayers through the publicly funded health system. There are now over 105,000 abortions a year in Canada. We are one of the few countries in the Western world that does not have any legal restrictions on abortion.”
There will still be a controversy about abortion in both the USA and Canada in the court of public opinion for a long time to come.
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