Page 2347 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 2 August 2017
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that I think it is extremely disappointing that the shadow minister for health has purposely absented herself from this important debate about health issues. The opposition leader says he has come to expect “these sorts of motions” from us, but I will counter that. His ensuing comments underline what Mr Berry said 15 years ago: that we must be vigilant.
The issue of abortion is complex. No-one is denying that. It inevitably raises issues of philosophy, biology, morality and religion. Some people hold genuine concerns for unborn foetuses and for the wellbeing of women who experience an abortion. Others here, me included, think abortion gives women power over their own lives and hold genuine concerns for the wellbeing of women who are not able to access a legal and safe abortion. We have heard all of that today. I think we can all agree on one thing: that pregnancy and abortion are significant issues, particularly for women—half the population—and our views on these topics are deeply personal. With that mind, I say again that this is a matter about individual choice.
Of course our party and our government respect a diversity of views. But the best way to respect a diversity of views is by allowing women the choice. Allowing choice is the greatest way to allow people to exercise their conscience. So it stands, by the opposition leader’s own reasoning, that the ACT Liberal Party should be pro-choice. They should not be allowing any member, not least the shadow health minister, to impose their views on other people. It should absolutely be about choice. Apparently they allow choice in the ACT Liberal Party, so why do they not come out and confirm that they are also pro-choice, as they should? Canberrans deserve to be represented by individuals who, regardless of their personal views, are willing to grant women the dignity and respect of deciding for themselves what they do with their bodies.
We now have the benefit of 15 years of hindsight when assessing the outcomes of decriminalising abortion in the ACT. The “grave concerns” raised by the opposition Liberal Party back in 2002 have not manifested themselves. Approved abortion clinics have not become soulless termination factories, pushing women into an abortion without adequate information or care. If a woman gets in touch with an approved abortion clinic, she will be able to discuss her options and access counselling and after-care services. And the floodgates have not opened. At least, the gates have not opened unless you are talking about the gates from backyard abortions into approved medical facilities, where abortions are carried out by trained medical professionals in a safe and non-judgmental environment, as they should be.
Women have always had abortions and they always will. To deny them the choice of a safe abortion is naive and dangerous. ACT Labor is not scared of progress. Nor are the Greens, if I may speak for them. Our commitment as a government to a better Canberra means delivering policies that reflect our community’s progressive values. If we are the first on some issues, then we will lead the way. The opposition leader has said his party has no policy on this. My view, like the Minister for Health’s, is that that is entirely inappropriate for an apparent alternative government. It is not appropriate to not have a policy on issues that affect half the population.
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