LifeCanada’s Monthly E-Newsflash

Monday, January 17, 2005

This is LifeCanada’s first e-news monthly bulletin. LifeCanada’s Monthly E-Newsflash will appear on or about the 15th of every month. Please invite your friends or family members to sign up for this free bulletin which will provide important updates, action items and notices of upcoming events.

Help need to stop the Justice Minister from legalizing assisted suicide

On November 17, 2004, Justice Minister, Irwin Cotler announced to the Justice Committee that it was time that Parliament revisit the issue of assisted suicide. Under section 241 of the Criminal Code of Canada, it is presently illegal to counsel, aid or abet a person to commit suicide. The September 1993 Supreme Court of Canada ruling in the Sue Rodriguez case stated that “Given the concern about abuse and the great difficulty in creating appropriate safeguards the blanket prohibition on assisted suicide is not arbitrary or unfair.” It is still essential that we maintain the law prohibiting assisted suicide to prevent vulnerable people from being killed.

Mr. Cotler and other government leaders need to hear from every pro-life person on this issue. To facilitate this task a petition has been prepared and is attached to this bulletin. Please print copies of the petition and have them signed through your churches, clubs, pro-life organizations or any other venue you can think of. We need to act now to ensure our government leaders are aware that Canadians do not want Section 241 of the Criminal Code to be struck down or amended. Please send all completed copies of the petition to the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, Box 25033, London, ON, N6C 6A8. The Coalition will forward all petitions to Members of Parliament to be read in the House of Commons.

The petition will be available in French in a few days. If you would like to receive a French copy of the petition, please email the LifeCanada office and we will send one out to you as soon as it is available. The email address is: carroll@lifecanada.org

CBC airs program on impact of abortion

The National, which airs nightly on CBC, will feature a special segment on the impact of abortion on women’s lives. The CBC has extensively interviewed Denise Mountenay of Canada Silent No More and other post-abortive women in preparation for this program. CBC has warned that they will also present the other side since they do not want to appear biased on the issue of abortion. Denise and all of us hope that the program will clearly show that abortion hurts women and destroys their unborn babies. The program is scheduled to air on or before January 28, 2005 to coincide with the date the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the law on abortion (January 28, 1988). Please watch for the program and send your comments to the CBC; thank you if they present the truth about the issue of complaints if they try to present abortion in a positive light. The email address for The National will be displayed at the end of the show.

Abortions must be paid for by taxpayers

A judge in Manitoba has ruled that the province violated women’s rights by not paying for abortions at the Morgentaler abortion clinic in Winnipeg. Associate Chief Justice of the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench, Jeffrey Oliphant, said refusing to pay for private abortions was a “gross violation”. The two women, identified only as Jane Doe 1 and 2, launched a class action suit against the provincial government in 2001. The Morgentaler Clinic has since been sold to a group of women and is fully funded by the Manitoba government. Justice Oliphant’s decision contradicts a Supreme Court of Canada decision handed down in November which clearly says province’s have the authority to decide what services will be funded through the publicly funded system. If the Manitoba government appeals the decision, there is a good chance it will be struck down because the judge assumed that abortions were “therapeutic” and did not consider the negative health effects of abortion on women. If it is not appealed, it be used as a precedent in other jurisdictions, most notably in New Brunswick, where Henry Morgentaler is already suing the province to force it to fund abortions at his clinic. It will also be used by other individuals and groups to force payment for all kinds of procedures not covered by public health care. It would be useful to contact Manitoba’s premier, and the health and justice ministers to urge them to appeal this decision. It is especially important for them to hear from Manitoba voters. Send your emails to: Premier Honourable Gary Doer: premier@leg.gov.mb.ca; Health Minister Honourable Tim Sale: minhlt@leg.gov.mb.ca; Justice Minister Honourable Gord Mackintosh: minjus@leg.gov.mb.ca.

Prayers needed

We are still awaiting the decision of the New Brunswick Court of Appeal on whether they will allow a coalition of pro-life groups to intervene as a third party in Morgentaler’s lawsuit against the Province of New Brunswick. As many of you know, Morgentaler is suing the province for refusing to fund abortions at his private clinic in Fredericton. It is important that the coalition be allowed to intervene so that evidence concerning the impact of abortion on women’s health can be presented. Also, the coalition needs to challenge Morgentaler’s erroneous claim that the Supreme Court of Canada granted women a constitutional right to abortion. Please pray for the three judges who will render a decision shortly that they will decide wisely and justly.

Mark your calendar

It is not too early to make plans to attend the 2005 national pro-life conference in Montreal. Please et aside November 17, 18 and 19, 2005 and plan to join us for an inspirational pro-life event featuring great speakers and an opportunity to tour one of the oldest cities in Canada.