New South Wales decriminalizes abortion
September 27, 2019, 22:40:02 CEST | Wikinews

Friday, September 27, 2019 

Australia
Related articles


27 September 2019: New South Wales decriminalizes abortion
18 December 2018: Australia now recognises West Jerusalem as Israeli capital, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announces
30 August 2018: Brisbane, Australia Magistrates Court charges two cotton farmers with $20m fraud
10 August 2018: New South Wales, Australia government says entire state in winter 2018 drought
1 July 2018: FIFA World Cup 2018 day 12, 13, 14, 15: Iran, Nigeria, Germany, Senegal out of the tournament

Location of Australia



Collaborate!

Pillars of Wikinews writing
Writing an article


Yesterday, the Parliament of New South Wales (NSW), Australia voted to pass the "Reproductive Health Care Reform Bill 2019" which decriminalized abortion. Until the new legislation, NSW had the most restrictive anti-abortion law in Australia. The NSW legislature in Sydney abolished any existing common law rules about abortion and legalized terminations up to week 22 of a pregnancy.


Greenwich celebrating marriage equality in 2017 Image: EqualityCWiki.
Since 1900, under the state's criminal code, abortions were only allowed if a doctor determined the mother was in danger, either mentally or physically. The bill was drafted by Alex Greenwich who said on the parliament floor, "It follows decades of work from women's rights campaigners, activists and people in the Parliament". The upper house debate involved 102 amendments, and was amongst the longest they have ever debated a bill.

Member of parliament (MP) Kevin Conolly said a law allowing the termination of a life marked a "sad day for NSW". Former prime minister Tony Abbott said, "It is a license for sex-selection abortions. It is a license for late-term abortion [...] It is effectively infanticide on demand."

MP Penny Sharpe, who co-sponsored the bill, said, "The current law has meant women and doctors have a threat of 10 years in jail for making this decision and that's not okay". Early opponent MP Tanya Davies said, "We have moved the bill to a better place".

Premier Gladys Berejiklian was not present at the bill's final vote.

New South Wales is the most populated Australian state. The state of South Australia still limits abortions to cases with two doctors' approval.






Have an opinion on this story? Share it!



Sister links[edit]
Abortion in Australia

Sources[edit]
"Australia abortion laws: Terminations now legal in New South Wales" — BBC News Online, September 26, 2019
Paolo Zialcita. "Australia's Largest State Lifts Abortion Restrictions" — NPR, September 26, 2019
Alexandra Smith. "Abortion decriminalised in NSW after bill passes last hurdle" — The Sydney Morning Herald, September 26, 2019
Alex Greenwich. "Reproductive Health Care Reform Bill 2019" — Parliament of New South Wales, September 26, 2019 (date of access) (PDF)





Share this: 

Source: Wikinews
Share this article:
share article on facebook share article on twitter share article on google+ share article on tumblr share article on blogger share article on reddit

Send us your articles and web-novels!
comments powered by Disqus
Most popular


Recently Viewed:


New South Wales decriminalizes abortion

Friday, September 27, 2019  Australia Related articles 27 September 2019: New South Wales...


Cilla Black funeral held in Liverpool

Stars from the world of showbusiness joined fans and mourners yesterday at the funeral of th...


On the campaign trail in the USA, July 2016

The following is the third edition of a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2016 presidentia...


Bulgarian police arrest four over eighteen dead migr...

Monday, February 20, 2023  A Bulgarian police car on July 24, 2019. Image: Upwinxp. Crime...


Former Irish footballer Liam Miller dies at 36

Monday, February 12, 2018  Obituaries   12 February 2018: Former Irish footballer Lia...

Automotive
Reviews | Technology | Projects & Tuning | Events | Racing
Business & Technology
Business & Economy | Mobile | Internet & Media | Security & Privacy | Gadgets & Tech | Software
Lifestyle
Health, Food & Fitness | Fashion | Gardening | DIY | Homes
Society
Accidents | Crime | Culture | Finance | Politics
Science & Environment
Wildlife | Green | Space
Gaming
Reviews
Society
Accidents | Crime | Culture | Finance | Politics
Travel
MM-iNEWS
Copyright & Privacy | Site Roadmap | Sitemap | Contact
Web Development @ OverHertz Ltd
Ω