Abortions After Fetal Viability

Abortion is without a doubt one of the hottest and most politically divisive topics, as at least one in five of all UK women will have an abortion at some stage in their lives. This document will attempt to explore the following areas of abortion and termination:

The facts concerning termination of Pregnancy.

The ethical and moral problems.

The controversies of an abortion/termination.

What is an abortion:
An abortion refers to a natural event, which is the spontaneous and automatic discontinuation of a Pregnancy in the early weeks after conception.

What is a termination:
A termination, also called a medical abortion, describes an invasive "medical" or surgical procedure in which a fetus or unborn child is, in some way, removed from the uterus with the intension its death. This is also used as a form of sex selection or infanticide.

Methods of termination:
Depending on the gestational age of the developing embryo or fetus, different methods of termination can be preformed to remove embryo or fetus from the womb.

The following describes frequently used methods of termination in the later stages (middle of the final trimester) of a Pregnancy:

Saline injection: (Used after 16 weeks) A strong salt solution is injected into the infant's "sac". The baby swallows this fluid and is poisoned by it and it acts as a corrosive, burning off the outer layer of skin. It normally takes somewhat over an hour for the baby to die from this. Within 24 hours, labour will usually set in and the mother will give birth to a dead or dying baby.

Hysterotomy: (Used in the last three months) The womb is entered by surgery and the umbilical cord is cut while the baby is still in the womb, thus cutting off its oxygen supply and causing it to suffocate. Sometimes the baby is removed alive and simply left in a corner to die of neglect or exposure.

Prostaglandin: (Used in the last two-three months) Chemicals are used that artificially induce labour, causeing the uterus to contract intensely, pushing out the developing baby. The contractions are more violent than normal, natural contractions, so the unborn baby is frequently killed by them; some have even been decapitated.

Historical background:
Abortion has a rich history in England, before 1967 all forms of termination were illegal, the women that wanted to terminate their pregnancies were forced to suffer commonly unsafe and potentially life-threatening sudo-medical "procedures", performed by unqualified people in dirty conditions; Many women were left infertile and some died from infection or loss of blood.

To counter act this type of problem, the l967 Termination Act was passed so that the terminations could be performed by trained doctors that are regulated and to encourage education. it shoude be noted that this act assumes that abortion will cause less mental or physical harm than continuing a Pregnancy. This assumption is without evidentiary support.

Women from religious denominations which strongly oppose abortion resoursed to performing abortions on themselves. It should be noted that in the Jewis faith, where the health, life, and well-being of the mother are threatened by the completion of her Pregnancy with the birth of the fetus, abortion is permissible, indeed mandated in some cases.

Current legal position:
Since abortion is an invasive medical procedure, the burden of proof is on those who advocate the maintaining of the legal status quo. The most resent amendment to English law state the a termination can be curried out up to 24 weeks after conception.

Under the l967 Termination Act, two doctors are required to sign a form that gives the consent of the mother to allow the operation under for the following circumstances.

If the Pregnancy presents grater risk to health of the mother than the termination.

If there is excessive foetal damage that wound seriously