Kenya: Student organisations reject legalization of abortion

Kenyan Members of Parliament (MPs) have been called to reject any amendment that has the effect of deleting or negating the fact that life begins at conception in the country’s new draft constitution, reports CISA.

In a press statement, issued on March 29, 2010 at St Paul’s University Chapel, Student Organisation of Nairobi University (SONU), together with the Universities and Colleges Chapter of Human Life International Kenya (HLI- Kenya) called upon all MPs to prioritise and support the minister for Public Health and Sanitation, Beth Mugo’s amendment.

This follows a heated debate on the draft Constitution of Kenya on when life begins in the new proposed Bill of Rights.

The two bodies expressed deep concern about the manner in which the provisions on the right to life have been handled by the committee of experts and parliamentarians.

In their statement on the right to life they said, “It is plausible that the proposed constitution [26(4)] expressly prohibits abortion. We are, however, opposed to any exceptions to this provision that has the effect of legalizing abortion on demand.”

The organisations said that the proposed constitution reduces the level of the personnel in whose opinion an abortion could be carried out from registered medical practitioner to any trained health professional.

According to their statement, they acknowledged that the Centre for Reproductive Rights (CRR in US) working closely with Kenya Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) are deeply interested in the legalization of abortion in this country.

They said they are aware that Mps are under a lot of external pressure by both inducement and coercion to adopt language in the constitution that is abortion friendly and called on the MPs to resist this pressure and witness to the truth.

“We own neither the means nor the forum to coerce or induce our members of parliament but we can appeal to the voters, our sisters, our mothers and our daughters,” they said.

They said that the people of Kenya are generally pro-life and it would be politically costly for any MP that supports the abortion lobby.

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TAGS: Kenya legalization of abortion new draft constitution Bill of Rights students

[04/01/2010]

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