By Tuntuni Bhattacharyya and Pat Brewer
On September 26, a 90-strong meeting called by the Women's Abortion Action Campaign discussed the implications of the current High Court case involving the legality of abortion, in which the Catholic Church has been granted status as a "friend of the court" to present its anti-choice view.
Katherine Henry, a Sydney lawyer representing the Abortion Providers Federation of Australia, outlined the possible outcomes: the presiding panel of judges may find the case inappropriate for disturbing the existing laws, or it may revisit the law on abortion. In the latter case, the NSW common law Levine ruling, which liberalises abortion access, may be overturned.
The Catholic Church gained involvement by claiming that if the court finds in favour of a woman who sued her doctors for a misdiagnosis of her pregnancy that prevented her obtaining an abortion, its hospitals will be under positive duty to inform all women attending its health services of the availability of abortion.
Other speakers at the meeting included Uniting Church minister Reverend Anne Wansborough, who said abortion was a private choice that churches shouldn't deprive women of, and Helen Pringle from the University of NSW, who tried to reassure the audience that it is safe to rely on common law access to abortion.
WAAC speaker Margaret Kirkby addressed the need to repeal all laws relating to abortion, arguing that, despite the ease of access to abortion afforded by the Levine ruling, the inclusion of abortion in the Crimes Act hinders access. Introduction of a repeal bill would be easy, she said, provided the community's pro-choice sentiment was mobilised to pressure state MPs.
Kirkby announced that a rally was being planned outside the High Court in Canberra on November 11, when the case is to resume.
During the brief discussion, Pringle's claim that abortion access was currently safe was disputed. ALP state MP Sandra Nori came under pressure to take her repeal bill out of her "bottom drawer" after she attempted to argue the "difficulties" of putting it to parliament.
The meeting unanimously passed resolutions calling on the High Court to affirm the validity of the Levine ruling, protesting abortion's inclusion in criminal law and calling on NSW MPs to repeal sections 82 to 84 of the Crimes Act.
Support for women's right to choose has increased over the decade from 1984, according to the Australian National University's International Social Science survey, summarised in the September 24 Canberra Times.
Support increased from an average of 82 out of 100 in 1984 to 87 in 1994.
[ "... and ain't i a woman" ]