by
Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
November 13,
2008
Email
RSS
Printer
Canberra,
Australia (LifeNews.com) -- A group of Australian MPs are disassociating
themselves with a statement the Australia Senate produced in their
name which calls for taxpayer funding of abortions of disabled unborn
babies. The statement says abortion is preferable to birth because
it supposedly costs too much to raise disabled children.
The Parliamentary Group on Population and Developments submitted the statement on behalf of the 41 MPs that belong to the caucus, but seven MPs say they don't want their name on the document.
The
statement, which mirrors one from the Australian Reproductive Health
Alliance comes in the middle of a debate on whether abortions in Australia
should be funded through the government's Medicare program.
The program currently spends $180,000 annually funding the abrotions
and pro-life lawmakers want that stopped.
The documents call for taxpayer-funding of abortion in the second trimester and says raising disabled children is a burden on taxpayers.
PGDP chair Senator Clair Moore wrote the statement, but the seven members emailed Moore in response saying they wanted their names removed.
MPs
who disowned the PGPD submission include Dr Brendan Nelson, Senator
Allan Eggleston, Julie Bishop and Philip Ruddock. Three other MPs
have written as well including Senator Ron Boswell.
Boswell accused the group of thinking "typical of the Hitler
regime" by targeting disabled people and saidit was "offensive."
"Its underlying premise that some lives are worth less than others
because they will cost too much to support, this is the kind of thinking
that was typical of the Hitler regime," he told the Senate.
Family First senator Steve Fielding said the rebate should be abolished.
"Disallowing item 16525 is unlikely to cut the number of abortions, but it would send a clear signal that the parliament is not willing to give direct financial support to the abortion of an unborn child," he said.
The
Senate Finance and Public Administration Committees Inquiry
held hearings on the abortion funding last month and its report will
be submitted today.
Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce said he thought abortions should be
abolished.
The
inquiry heard about babies being left to die following botched abortions,
the pain babies feel during the abortion process, and the methods
used to kill unborn children during the second trimester.
Sign Up for Free Pro-Life News From LifeNews.com
|
Daily
Pro-Life News Report
|
Twice-Weekly
Pro-Life
News Report |
|
Receive
a free daily email report from LifeNews.com with the latest
pro-life news stories on abortion, euthanasia and stem cell
research. Sign up
here.
|
Receive
a free twice-weekly email report with the latest pro-life
news headlines on abortion, euthanasia and stem cell research.
Sign up here.
|





