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"Doctors
take an oath to 'DO NO HARM'. The Government should take
the same oath"
OTTAWA
- Nine years of hard work appear to have paid off for
Garry Breitkreuz, MP for Yorkton-Melville, when his Private
Member's Motion M-83 was drawn for debate last week. "Since
sending me to Ottawa in 1993, I've been working on two
issues vital to the vast majority of my constituents -
democratic reform and rights for the unborn. Both converged
this week with the selection for debate of my Private
Member's Motion M-83," said Breitkreuz.
While
Breitkreuz has introduced many pro-life motions in the
last nine years and some have even been debated, the rules
of the House of Commons worked against bringing this important
issue to a vote. After years of work, and with the unanimous
consent of all parties, the rules were changed last month
that all Private Members' bills and motions drawn for
debate would be votable. "Now for the first time,
Members of Parliament will be voting on many important
issues - not just the ones the Liberals decide are important.
The sad fact that unborn children have no rights at all
until they are actually born is a prime example of an
issue the Liberals have been trying to avoid for the last
nine years," said Breitkreuz. "Well, they can't
hide from reality any longer."
Breitkreuz's
Motion M-83 states: That the Standing Committee on Health
fully examine, study and report to Parliament on: (a)
whether or not abortions are medically necessary for the
purpose of maintaining health, preventing disease or diagnosing
or treating an injury, illness or disability in accordance
with the Canada Health Act; and (b) the health risks for
women undergoing abortions compared to women carrying
their babies to full term.
Last
October, Health Minister Anne McLellan was quoted in a
number of newspapers saying: "Our view is that obviously
abortion is a medically necessary service." But Breitkreuz
released a letter from her own department that contradicted
the Minister's statement. The Health Canada letter admitted
they don't have any evidence showing that abortions are
"medically necessary". Breitkreuz also produced
copies of letters from ten provincial and territorial
ministers of health stating that they have NOT completed
a risk/benefit analysis on abortion. Breitkreuz's motion
will be debated for two hours, but Parliament would not
be expected to vote on the motion until the fall.
"If
passed by the House of Commons, my motion would require
the Standing Committee on Health to fully examine this
question of whether or not an abortion is a "medically
necessary" procedure in accordance with the definition
in the Canada Health Act. If the Health Committee's study
reveals that most abortions are not a 'medically necessary'
procedure, then taxpayers shouldn't be paying for them,"
said Breitkreuz. "Doctors take an oath to 'DO NO
HARM'. The government should take the same oath. We know
abortions are deadly for the baby, but everyone needs
to know the health risks for the mother. Every woman and
her family should know what these health risks are before
they reach a decision to have an abortion."
An
extensive Léger Marketing poll made public last
fall shows that only 30% of Canadians are satisfied with
the current definition of a human being in the Criminal
Code that only protects human life from the point of birth.
"The vote on my motion M-83 will be the first step
in getting a more realistic definition and better protection
for the rights of the unborn," concluded Breitkreuz.
See
a Petition to the House of Commons of Canada for the Private
Member's
Motion M-83: http://garrybreitkreuz.com/publications/M-83petitionabortions.htm
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