Letters to the editor - December 6, 2021

Criminal abortion or therapeutic termination of pregnancy?

It was a pleasure to read Alfred Sant’s urbane and reasoned reply to my original letter on the subject of terminations of pregnancy carried out for therapeutic reasons, that is,  to save the life of the mother or safeguard her against grievous threats to her health (December 2).

We seem to agree on two basic facts. Firstly, that these therapeutic terminations of pregnancy are carried out, openly and routinely, in public hospitals and clinics. Secondly, that never, in recorded history, has any person who participated in a therapeutic termination of pregnancy been charged with or been found guilty of committing a criminal offence. This applies equally to mothers, doctors, midwives, nurses or anyone else.

There must be a reason why. The obvious reason is that the so-called ‘absolute’ prohibition of abortion contained in article 241 of the Criminal Code has always been read in context together with other, equally compelling, principles of criminal law. Criminal abortion is one thing, therapeutic termination of pregnancy a wholly different one. The two belong to entirely distinct classes.

To apply article 241 in total...