called The Human Fertilization and Embryology Act. This was basically the same
act but the time limit by which an abortion should be carried out was reduced from
28 weeks to 24 weeks.
There are many reasons why a woman would want to have an abortion, particularly
if the pregnancy is unplanned or unwanted. The mother may be too young to look
after a child. Some teenagers are not mature enough either physically or emotionally,
to take charge of thier own lives, let alone that of a small baby or child. In addition,
the mother may want to continue with her education or career opportunities but
however can’t if she continues with the pregnancy, as this will severely handicap her
when it comes to seeking employment. For example, the majority of employers
would not be willing to take on mothers, due to paid holidays and maternity leave,
when given the choice they would rather choose a no strings attatched woman. The
mother also might not be able to look after the child financially and feels it would be
unfair on her and the baby, to bring up a child knowing that she couldn’t offer the
baby a decent life and the child would face a life of poverty and deprivation.
Therefore, it would be more responsible and fair in some people’s eyes, to have an
abortion.
Another issue, which could be considered, is the health of the mother and the
baby. The mother may be either too young or too old to cope physically with the
pregnancy. Some people feel that doctors should be able to offer a woman an
abortion if they know that continuing the pregnancy might put her life at risk. The
mother may have an illness, which would interfere with pregnancy or even cause
health problems for the baby. Technology now allows doctors to examine the baby
before birth, in the womb. This could result in finding out if the baby has any
illnesses or disabilities. A baby who is born handicapped can often put a strain on
an entire family, and some mothers feel that it wouldn’t be fair to put their baby
through a lifetime of pain. Therefore, they decide to have an abortion.
In special cases, it is generally felt that abortion should be available to help
young women who have been sexually assaulted or victims of incest. They fall
pregnant after being raped and in addition to facing the trauma and emotional
difficulties following the assault, they cannot face giving birth to the child of a
rapist. Why should a woman have to go through the ordeal of rape then have to
suffer an unwanted pregnancy?
On the other hand, there many reasons why people believe that abortions are
wrong. Having an abortion can often have a bad effect on a woman’s mental,
physical or emotional health. One possible after-effect of having an abortion is that
the woman may be deprived of having other children in the future, due to the
abortion making it harder for her to conceive later in life. It may also increase the
chances of miscarriage in a later pregnancy particularly if the abortion is late. There
are sometimes risks of pelvic infections, abdominal pain and an increased
possibility of ectopic pregnancy.
A woman, who has an abortion, may also experience regret and long-term
emotional difficulties in relationships.
When it comes to abortion, there are many different religious opinions. Judaism,
Hinduism and Islam all hold similar views that all life is sacred and is a gift from
their god, which should not be interfered with. However, there are slight variations
in that Hindus and Muslims believe that if the mother’s life is at risk, then abortion
would be considered. Although there is no one single Christian view on abortion,
The Roman Catholic Church believes that life begins at conception and that it is a
sin to destroy life. The official Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church states
that anyone who commits the sin of abortion automatically excommunicates himself
or herself from the church. However the Roman Catholic Church does preach an
attitude of love and support, not condemnation, for those who have had an
abortion.
Many people also believe that abortion is an easy and a “quick fix” way of
getting rid of an unwanted baby. They think that because abortion is so readily
available that woman do not take the possibility of pregnancy seriously enough.
Furthermore they feel that some woman take advantage of the availability of
abortions and are more careless about contraception than they would otherwise be.
In conclusion, having looked at both sides of the argument, I believe that abortion is
wrong under many circumstances, for example using it as a means of contraception
or getting rid of a responsibility for financial reasons. I feel that abortions are
necessary in many circumstances such as when the mother or baby’s life is in
danger. Finally, in my opinion, it is a woman’s right to choose what happens to her
body and she should be able to decide for herself if she wants to have a child or
not.
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