Currently approximately 18,000 abortions are committed in New Zealand every year. In 2008, abortion claimed the lives of 1,487 pre-born babies in the Waikato region. Yet despite this unacceptably high figure, the Family Planning Association is applying for a licence for their Hamilton office to administer RU486, a medical abortion procedure. This drug is used for killing foetuses up to 9 weeks post-conception.

Stop Family Planning is glad to support the 2010 South Island March for Life which will be taking place on 9 April 2010 in Christchurch, New Zealand. The organisers of the March for Life put out a press release today which explains the purpose and details of the march, an excerpt follows:

In New Zealand approximately 18,000 pre-born babies are killed every year by abortion. This works out at approximately 50 babies dying from this form of child abuse in New Zealand. Every day.

The Family Planning Association has applied to the Abortion Supervisory Committee for a licence to use the deadly RU486 drug to kill babies up to 9 weeks of age at their Hamilton clinic. If approval is given for the Hamilton clinic to use RU 486, the other 29 clinics throughout NZ will soon follow.

“As a community we’re working hard to fight child abuse for children that have been born,” said march spokesperson, Sargia Harrison “But when are we going to, as a community, speak up for the silent unborn citizens of our country and say – enough with the killing?”

“It is imperative that we all take a strong stand against child abuse, whether it occurs before or after birth. If we place a low value on pre-born babies, then at the end of the day, this attitude will impact on the value we place on all human life. It is a very dangerous way to go.”

“It’s time to stand up for the mothers who find themselves in a crisis pregnancy situation. It’s time for guys in New Zealand to stand up and support their wives, partners and girlfriends. A crisis pregnancy is a really scary thing for so many women, so instead of forcing them into a corner where they feel abortion is the only way out, we need to offer women real alternatives. We want women to be able to make a truly informed decision.” she said.

The march is being supported by Family First, Focus on the Family, Right to Life, Family Life International, Prolife NZ and us here at Stop Family Planning. It is excellent that all these groups are speaking up together on behalf of the unborn: that pre-born babies are valuable, that New Zealand’s abortion rate is appallingly high, and that the FPA should be denied their application for a license to kill yet more babies throughout the country.

Details of the March are here: March for Life – About

The march in Wellington on Friday 12 February was covered in the Gisborne Herald on 15 Feb, 2010 – a scan of the article is below, followed by text.

March to stop ‘abortion pill’

WELLINGTON — Hundreds braved the wild Wellington weather to express their concern at the Family Planning Association (FPA)application for a licence to perform abortions in their clinics.
Stop Family Planning was pleased at the turnout at Friday’s march from Civic Square to the steps of Parliament organised to oppose the FPA’s application for an abortion licence.
March organiser and Stop Family Planning spokesperson Simeon Brown said that the turnout indicated strong support for their call for the Abortion Supervisory Committee to deny the FPA an abortion licence to kill babies with the dangerous abortifacient, Mifepristone (RU-486).
Currently, 18,000 abortions are committed in New Zealand every year.
“We all agree that too many abortions are occurring in New Zealand. If this application is approved it will only increase that number,” Mr Brown said.
“The voice of New Zealand is clear. The Abortion Supervisory Committee must deny the FPA a licence to kill pre-born children up to 9weeks.”
Stop Family Planning will continue to oppose the FPA being granted an abortion licence.
In an open letter to Prime Minister John Key and Health Minister Tony Ryall, Mr Brown and Prolife NZ spokesperson Lydia Moore asked they do whatever they could to disallow a licence to the FPA to committ abortions in their clinics.
“The FPA is New Zealand’s primary sexual health educator, which means there is a conflict of interest: they may be biased in their educating as performing abortions will be part of their service,” the letter said.
The march was also supported by Family First NZ, ProLife NZ and Right to Life.
Bob McCoskrie, national director of Family First NZ says this will mean that Family Planning will be able to talk women into having abortions, and then carry the procedure out on them.
“There is a huge conflict of interest here. Those offering advice should not be the ones performing the abortions,” Mr McCoskrie said.
“There is also huge concern about the drug’s considerable harmful effects on women’s health, with a US track record that includes deaths and over 1000 reports of complications — many of them serious or life-threatening. RU-486 has produced none of the effects of normalising abortion that were predicted for it.”
The US FDA has released reports of complications including death resulting from:
• haemorrhage (excessive bleeding)
• serious and sometimes fatal infections
• missed diagnoses of ectopic pregnancy (outside the uterus, usually in the fallopian tube).
Up to 10 percent of women will still require surgical abortions to complete the process and there have been at least five deaths in the US that resulted directly from severe infection in the blood stream of women who took RU-486 orally.
Edouard Sakiz, chairman of Roussel Uclaf, the company that first marketed RU-486 said: “As abortifacient procedures go, RU-486 is not at all easy to use
. . . a woman who wants to end her pregnancy has to ‘live’ with her abortion for at least a week using this technique. It’s an appalling psychological ordeal.”
And Dr. Etienne-Emile Baulieu, the inventor of RU-486 said: “It’s insulting to women to say that abortion now will be as easy as taking aspirins. It is always difficult, psychologically and physically, sometimes tragic.”
Family First is calling for informed consent — including ultrasound — for women considering an abortion, and a ‘cooling period’ before making the decision.
They also want parental notification for teenagers who are seeking an abortion.
“We believe women and teenage girls are entitled to the truth when faced with an unplanned pregnancy, including all the options available.
“They should not be exploited by Family Planning who have a conflict of interest, including a financial conflict of interest,” says Mr McCoskrie.
Prolife NZ spokesperson Lydia Moore was one of the speakers to address the rally at Parliament. Right to Life also supported the march.
The FPA declined to be interviewed on TVNZ with Mr Brown.

Following a highly successful march to Parliament to oppose the Family Planning Association’s application for an abortion licence, Simeon Brown, spokesperson of Stop Family Planning, and Lydia Moore, spokesperson of Prolife NZ wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister of New Zealand John Key, and the Minister of Health, Tony Ryall, asking them to take a serious look at NZ’s outrageously high abortion rate, and the FPA’s application. The letter is reproduced below.

12 February 2010

Open letter to Prime Minister John Key
CC’d Tony Ryall Minister of Health

Dear John,

As you will be aware, Stop Family Planning held a march today to protest the granting of an abortion license to the Family Planning Association (FPA). Hundreds of people marched from Civic Square to Parliament steps, where they were addressed by speakers from Voice for Life, Stop Family Planning and the youth-based group, Prolife NZ.

There is now a groundswell of public opinion that the New Zealand abortion rate must be reduced: currently there are over 18,000 abortions being committed each year, a rate that is one of the highest in the world. Today’s march only confirmed this general feeling.

Our country’s youth are passionate in their belief that women need to be well informed of the dangers of the chemical abortifacient, Mifepristone, a drug that causes terrible side effects and has killed many women internationally. Our countries youth are also concerned that our already high abortion rate will rise if the FPA are granted a license.

The FPA is New Zealand’s primary sexual health educator, which means there is a conflict of interest: they may be biased in their educating as performing abortions will beart of their service.

We ask you to do whatever you can in your power to disallow a license to the FPA to commit abortions in their clinics.

We would like to ask to meet with you to discuss this matter further as we believe it is an issue which needs careful consideration of the differing view points.

Yours Faithfully,

Lydia Moore (18yrs)
ProLife New Zealand

Simeon Brown (18yrs)
Stop Family Planning

On 12 Feb. 2010, Stop Family Planning spokesperson Simeon Brown was interviewed by Pippa Wetzell on the Breakfast Programme on TV1. The video is below.

Stop Family Planning
12 February 2010
Media Release

Stop Family Planning was pleased at the turnout at a march in Wellington today organised to oppose the Family Planning Association’s application for an abortion licence.

March organiser and Stop Family Planning spokesperson Simeon Brown said that the turnout indicated strong support for their call for the Abortion Supervisory Committee to deny the Family Planning Association an abortion licence to kill babies with the dangerous abortifacient, Mifepristone.

“Hundreds braved the wild Wellington weather to express their concern at the Family Planning Association being given a licence to perform abortions in their clinics,” said Mr Brown.

Currently, 18,000 abortions are committed in New Zealand every year.

“We all agree that too many abortions are occurring in New Zealand. If this application is approved it will only increase that number”, he continued. “The voice of New Zealand is clear. The Abortion Supervisory Committee must deny the FPA a licence to kill pre-born children up to 9weeks.”

Stop Family Planning will continue to oppose the Family Planning Association being granted an abortion licence.

ENDS

More Information:
Contact Simeon Brown
021 02724242

Family First Press Release, 11 Feb, 2010

Family First NZ is supporting a march to the steps of Parliament tomorrow protesting against Family Planning applying to the Abortion Supervisory Committee for a license to use the abortion pill RU486 to perform abortions.

“This will mean that Family Planning will be able to talk women into having abortions, and then carry the procedure out on them,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ. “There is a huge conflict of interest here. Those offering advice shouldn’t be the ones performing the abortions.”

“There is also huge concern about the drug’s considerable harmful effects on women’s health, with a US track record that includes deaths and over a thousand reports of complications – many of them serious or life-threatening. RU-486 has produced none of the effects of normalising abortion that were predicted for it.”

The US FDA has released reports of complications including death resulting from:

1. haemorrhage (excessive bleeding)
2. serious and sometimes fatal infections
3. missed diagnoses of ectopic pregnancy (outside the uterus, usually in the fallopian tube)

Up to 10% of women will still require surgical abortions to complete the process and there have been at least five deaths in the US that resulted directly from severe infection in the blood stream of women who took RU-486 orally.

Edouard Sakiz, chairman of Roussel Uclaf, the company that first marketed RU-486 said “As abortifacient procedures go, RU-486 is not at all easy to use . . . a woman who wants to end her pregnancy has to ‘live’ with her abortion for at least a week using this technique. It’s an appalling psychological ordeal.”

And Dr. Etienne-Emile Baulieu, the inventor of RU-486 “It’s insulting to women to say that abortion now will be as easy as taking aspirins. It is always difficult, psychologically and physically, sometimes tragic.”

Family First is calling for informed consent (including ultrasound) for women considering an abortion, and a ‘cooling period’ before making the decision. They also want parental notification for teenagers who are seeking an abortion.

“We believe women and teenage girls are entitled to the truth when faced with an unplanned pregnancy, including all the options available. They should not be exploited by Family Planning who have a conflict of interest, including a financial conflict of interest,” says Mr McCoskrie.

ENDS

Right to Life Press Release, 12 Feb, 2010

Right to Life supports the march to Parliament today 12 February, organised by [Stop Family Planning] to oppose Family Planning being granted a licence to kill unborn children. The Association proposes to provide medical abortions with the lethal murder pill, Mifegyne RU 486 for babies in their first nine weeks of life at its Hamilton clinic. It hopes to eventually obtain abortion licences for its other 29 clinics. This human pesticide RU 486 is lethal in causing the death of unborn children by starvation and is dangerous for women’s health, 13 women have died worldwide after using this drug.

The High Court has stated in a judgment by Justice Miller that there are serious concerns about the lawfulness of many abortions authorised in New Zealand. In the event that Family Planning obtained an abortion licence our Society would have serious concerns about the lawfulness of abortions authorised by Family Planning doctors.

It is Family Planning’s objective to obtain government funding for providing abortions. Right to Life is disappointed that the Minister of Health Tony Ryall is not prepared to intervene to stop the Waikato District Health Board from giving the Association funding provided by the taxpayer. There are many taxpayers who are totally opposed to their taxes being used to kill unborn children. Our taxes should be used to protect life not destroy it. It is scandalous that the government which proclaims that it wants to promote family life should use our taxes to kill unborn children, the weakest and most defenceless members of the human family.

Family Planning in announcing its plans for our families proclaims that it is providing a service to women by providing them with choice and access. This is an appalling falsehood, Women faced with an unplanned pregnancy don’t need choice in the way their child is to be killed or access to a killing clinic. Women need support, compassion and practical help for them to give life to their baby. If Family Planning really cared about the welfare of vulnerable women and their unborn child they would be providing women with real choice by providing them with the support needed to protect both the mother and her child.

Family Planning is a member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation which promotes contraception and abortion worldwide they are the leaders in promoting a culture of death. Right to Life calls upon the government to stop Family Planning killing unborn children by refusing government funding.

ENDS

Ken Orr
Spokesperson

The Family Planning Association has applied to the Abortion Supervisory Committee for a licence to use the deadly RU 486 drug to kill babies up to 9 weeks of age at their Hamilton clinic. If they get approval for the Hamilton clinic, the other 29 clinics throughout NZ will be next.

The two-part drug is deadly to unborn babies which it is designed to kill and also has been know to have dangerous side effects on the women who take it.The first pill starves the pre-born child of nutrients while the second pill causes a premature birth.

“At a time when this country is trying to rid itself of a culture of violence, the FPA is seeking a licence to further a culture of death,” said Andy Moore of Stop Family Planning. “We already have a large number of abortion clinics throughout the country and a shamefully high abortion rate – the answer to our problem is not more abortions but better education for young people.”

“The Family Planning Association receives government-funding and exists to educate the people of New Zealand about sexual-health,” he said. “They will also receive payment from the government for each abortion they perform. There’s a glaring conflict of interest here with a counselling service actually performing the abortion that they have just recommended that a girl have.”

On the 12th of February concerned citizens will be marching to Parliament to protest against the FPA being given this licence.

The Purpose of the march is to firstly, compel the Abortion Supervisory Committee to deny the FPA the licence and secondly, to urge Parliament to amend the Contraception, Sterilisation and Abortion Act 1977 to ban this drug.

March details: Concerned citizens meet in Civic Square to march peacefully at 12:30pm on the 12th of February 2010.

Right to Life Press Release, 30 November 2009

Right to Life is disappointed that Telecom New Zealand is supporting a culture of death by making annual grants to the New Zealand Family Planning Association of $50,000  for  2006 – 2009.

Right to Life is totally opposed to grants being made to this controversial Association. We know that the Family Planning Association is strongly pro-abortion. The Association is the major abortion referral agency in New Zealand; it believes that we need abortion as a back up for so called failed contraceptives. It supports girls under the age of 16 being able to have an abortion without the knowledge or consent of parents and has an employment policy to employ only doctors who believe that abortion is for a woman to choose in consultation with a doctor of her choice. This is abortion on demand which is unlawful in New Zealand.  Justice Miller in the High Court Judicial Review of the performance of the Abortion Supervisory Committee, stated in his judgment in June 2008, that abortion on demand was unlawful and that “there is reason to doubt the lawfulness of many abortions authorised by certifying consultants.” Many doctors employed by Family Planning are certifying consultants.

The Family Planning Association has publicly stated that it is its intention to apply to the Abortion supervisory Committee for an abortion licence for each of its 30 clinics in New Zealand. In July the Association applied to the Committee for an abortion licence for its Hamilton clinic. Our Society will vigorously oppose this and future applications for an abortion licence. An abortion licence is in effect a licence to kill.

Telecom New Zealand has an enviable reputation for integrity and service to the community. Right to Life commends the Corporation for providing grants to many organisations that promote the common good. Right to Life wrote to Telecom expressing our Society’s opposition to the grants to the Family Planning Association which promotes a culture of death. The Head of Corporate & Social Responsibility for Telecom responded that they were not prepared to enter into a debate on the issues that we raised. For the Corporation to continue to provide annual grants to the Association that intends to operate 30 abortion clinics in New Zealand, would be deplorable and damaging to Telecom’s reputation and attraction as the main telecom service provider in New Zealand.

We request that in the interest of protecting the reputation of Telecom and the lives of unborn New Zealanders and the health and welfare of vulnerable women that they terminate grants to the Family Planning Association.

In the event that Telecom persists in making these grants to Family Planning, which support the killing of unborn children, Right to Life would encourage concerned citizens to change their service provider and would actively encourage our members and supporters to take similar action.

Pro-life Kiwis will on Friday march in solidarity with the unborn, protesting the abortion bid by the Family Planning Clinic.

The protest coincides with the 30 November end date for the petition put forward by Sue Roe. The petition calls for the Abortion Supervisory Committee to deny the Family Planning Association’s request to be permitted to commit abortions against mothers and their pre-born children up to 9 weeks at their Hamilton clinic.

The Family Planning Association has previously announced its intention to convert all of its centres into providers of chemical abortions. If the Hamilton clinic is granted a license it will be a matter of time before New Zealand receives the dubious honour of having 30 new abortion clinics throughout the country.

Women and girls of any age will be able to come into the clinic without an appointment, receive counselling and then go ahead with an abortion in the same visit.

“This is terrible as mothers will be compelled to make an abortion decision within a very short time-frame,” says march co-organiser Andy Moore. “This will lead to women being encouraged to have an abortion, taking the pill and then regretting their decision shortly afterwards.”

“They want to be allowed to kill children with the chemical abortion method,” he says. “The first pill starves the baby of essential nutrients followed by the second pill about 48 hours later which artificially stimulates an extremely premature birth. It’s an unthinkably awful way for anyone to die. Not only this, but often the baby is pushed out when the mother is at home, occasionally alive and then dying very shortly afterwards. RU486 abortions not only destroy innocent human life but are often a traumatic experience for the mother.”

Marchers will gather in front of Parliament at 4:30pm on Friday 27 November, marching to the Margaret Sparrow Family Planning Clinic at 35 Victoria Street. All are welcome to this peaceful march.

ENDS