President-elect of Argentina cancels pro-abortion legislation

Pro-abortion legislators in Argentina are denouncing the president-elect, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, for putting the breaks on legislation that would regularize the practice of abortions not punished under Argentine law, reports Matthew Cullinan Hoffman, LifeSiteNews.com.

Although all abortions are illegal in Argentina, and the Constitution guarantees that "each person has the right to respect for his life from the moment of conception" there are cases in which such abortions do not carry a criminal penalty in the national penal code, including cases of rape or impregnation of a mentally retarded woman.

The president-elect's actions are surprising given her affiliation with the pro-abortion Peronist party. Fernandez´ husband, who is the current president of Argentina, has a pro-abortion health minister and seems to favor legalization.

Fernandez herself made ambiguous statements to the press about her position on abortion only days before her election. She also says she favors "sexual choice", a euphemism in Latin America for the homosexual rights agenda.

National deputy Juan Acuña Kunz, a member of an opposition party, said that Fernandez was seeking to reestablish relations with the Church, which has denounced the pro-abortion tendencies of her husband's regime.

Other deputies angrily called for the legislation to be restored to the agenda for December, the month it was originally scheduled for a vote.

According to a columnist at the Argentine publication La Gaceta, the bishops of Argentina are pleased with Fernandez' actions, but are suspicious about her motives.

"It's always positive when bills that promote the culture of death do not prosper," an unnamed Church spokesman told La Gaceta. "But, if what has been rumored is true, it creates a bad precedent for democracy because it violates the logical independence of government powers."

The unexpected reversal of the Peronist party's plans to normalize abortion procedures in Argentina runs against a trend that has worried Church authorities in recent months. They are reportedly considering a new national pro-life campaign to counter the aggressive tactics of international pro-abortion agencies that have poured millions of dollars into Argentina.

They have denounced the "growing offensive against human life" at both the national and provincial level, illustrated by the decision of the legislature of the province of La Pampa to legalize virtually all abortions.

Cristiana Fernadez de Kirchner will take the oath of office on December 10th.

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[01/03/2008]

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