Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/955503
11 maltatoday SUNDAY 18 MARCH 2018 Analysis TIA RELJIC COMMENTARY AFTER making contact with gynaecologists who vehe- mently refuse to speak on record about abortion, it be- came abundantly clear that this group of professionals has a very interesting perspective to offer. My question was simple and non-controversial: Do Maltese patients ever seek their ad- vice on abortion? The answers were strictly off-record, that is, unless what they have to say is in line with the apparent national consensus that abor- tion is unacceptable under all circumstances. But within this group of professionals, the consen- sus seems to be that Maltese women do indeed seek abor- tions, and they do ask their gynaes for advice, and almost always – if not always – due to serious health concerns. Doubtlessly there are also women who seek what is col- loquially referred to as "abor- tions of convenience." But these are women who would probably not consult their gy- naecologists prior to booking their flights to countries like Italy, Belgium, or the UK, any- way. But when faced with the dif- ficult situation of being asked by their patients whether they should consider abortion in cases of severe issues, one professional said that – as dif- ficult as it may be – they could not bring themselves to tell the woman to carry the un- born to term. "It would be far more cruel, and it would weigh on my conscience, than to suggest to the woman to undergo an abortion. It shouldn't matter what the majority thinks, and whether the prime minister thinks this issue warrants a discussion or not," one said. "I believe that if there is one Maltese citizen with a serious medical condition, carrying a baby which will clearly not live, something needs to be done." "These women will have the most horrendous of births," another said. "And that is real trauma." While surveys carried out by this newspaper quantitatively suggest that abortion, so re- viled by the Maltese nation, is a non-issue for the political class, last week's proposals by the Women's Rights Founda- tion have certainly pushed reproductive rights into new territory ripe for debate. For ignoring the reality of Maltese women seeking abor- tion also underlines the inher- ent classism of those who can accept that women should buy an air ticket and go abroad if they need. What is essentially being said is that abortions should be reserved only for those who can afford them – not to mention the fact that the procedure itself is crimi- nalised. The idea that access to abortions through the public health system is not necessary since Maltese women can get them abroad is fundamentally, morally, and factually flawed. More sensitive profession- als who often guide women through difficult pregnancies are capable of showcasing a side to the abortion debate which is usually swept under the rug. They ought to be lis- tened to, if only they were al- lowed to speak up without facing serious professional consequences. As Nationalist MP Claudette Buttigieg diplomatically said in Parliament this week, the country cannot simply turn a blind eye to the women who seek abortions abroad. "We need to help these women, and provide them with alter- natives," she said. "We can- not demonise those whom we don't agree with." But gynaecologists I spoke to understand that the pro- abortion label in Malta is no light burden. Like politicians who steer clear from the con- troversy, gynaecologists say the issue could detract other much needed 'political' gains: "You don't need any talk on abortion when you're plan- ning to revise the IVF law and talk about embryo freezing," one said. tia.reljic@mediatoday.com.mt This may well provoke a popu- lar reaction against the same "lib- eral elite" evoked by Tonio Borg ten years ago. While rational and nuanced debate on the issue may well shift opinions on the subject where many have only heard only one side of the story, pushing the progressive agenda a bit too far also raises fears of a conservative backlash which has so far been avoided. So how will Maltese political parties react to all this? A quandary for both parties For Labour abortion is likely to remain a no-go area at least for the time being. As things stand the party cannot ignore the fact that the vast majority of its sup- porters oppose abortion. Labour will probably bank on being seen by liberals as the least conservative of the two parties by coming across as the party which is against abortion but open to debate on it. Labour could in this way benefit from the perception of the PN as the most vocal anti- abortion party, for Malta is still at a stage where the very legitimacy of having a debate on the issue is questioned. The debate could cre- ate a new divide in Maltese civil society and provide government with a distraction from other is- sues. It may also be responsive to polls especially if these show changes in attitudes to abortion in any of the four cases raised by the Women's Rights Federation. For who would have expected the Maltese to accept gay mar- riage and adoptions when a Eu- robarometer in 2007 showed only 7% agreeing with gay adoptions and 18% with gay marriage? Mus- cat himself changed his opinion on gay marriage, which he op- posed when he was elected in 2008. Still there is a fundamental dif- ference between gay rights and abortion. For while the former is seen as a measure aimed at mak- ing a category of people happier without any detriment to anyone else, many would argue that abor- tion involves the taking away of a potential life. The issue is trickier for the Na- tionalist Party as it could galva- nise the more conservative wing of the party, alienating more moderate voices. Abortion may serve to strengthen fundamental- ists and silence the party's more liberal wing which may still be against abortion but is not neces- sarily against debating the issue rationally. Under Simon Busuttil the party had broken a taboo when accept- ing maverick candidate Salvu Mallia as a candidate despite his pro-choice views. But with abor- tion becoming more of a politi- cal issue, the party may well be tempted to turn its opposition in to a mark of identity, thus exclud- ing liberal pro-choice elements who may support the party on many other issues. On Sunday Delia committed his party to fight to safeguard the right of the unborn child and re- ferring to the absence of a clause on abortion in the domestic vio- lence Bill he accused the govern- ment of "wanting to safeguard women but not the unborn." While it is understandable that the PN remains opposed to legal abortion, the question the party has to answer is whether it is still open to people who disagree with such a stance. Perhaps Delia may well consider the greater openness shown by other leaders in his own politi- cal family: in Ireland Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar is cam- paigning to end his country's constitutional ban on abortion, despite his adherence to the Eu- ropean People's Party and Fine Gael's Christian democratic roots. Even professionals won't talk about abortion "These women will have the most horrendous of births. And that is real trauma" The great big 'abortion scare': Paul Vincenti (top right) led the Gift of Life movement to support a proposal to entrench the ban on abortion in the Constitution. Left: Emmy Bezzina, left, with Rebecca Gomperts of Women On Waves in a debate with Vincenti at the Castille Hotel in Valletta, where Gomperts was hosting a press conference in October 2007 Ironically this may have fulfilled the Gift of Life fantasy of having an adversary to engage and oppose, thus giving credence to their claim that abortion is an imminent threat LARA DIMITRIJEVIC INTERVIEW PGS 14-15