In the report 10 years on: fivefold rise in domestic violence across Malta, Gozo it is stated that: “At law, domestic violence is defined as ‘any act of violence, even if only verbal, perpetrated by a household member upon another household member and includes any omission which causes physical or moral harm to the other’.”
Article 2 (ix) of the Domestic Violence Act of 2005 also states that “the child conceived but yet unborn of any of the persons mentioned in paragraphs (i) to (vii) both inclusive” is “a member of the household” to be protected by the domestic violence law from ‘any’ type of violence. The Malta Unborn Child Movement (MUCM) was instrumental in the inclusion of this clause in the law.
Yet, when quoting statistics about domestic violence in Malta, many reports never mention ‘any’ harm done to unborn children by household members when we know, for sure, that about 70 abortions are made in the UK each year by people from Malta. This newspaper has reported such statistics many times.
Abortions are the deliberated killing, for whatever reason, of conceived very little human beings. It is very much more than physical harm “perpetrated by a household member upon another household member”.
The Times of Malta (February 24) reported that in Parliament, government backbencher Deo Debattista had urged the government to set up a “pro-life” clinic to help mothers considering abortion. Debattista said many women were not being helped to the full and problem cases needed urgent assistance, including easier access to adoption.
When quoting statistics about domestic violence in Malta, many reports never mention any harm done to unborn children by household members
While it is normally thought that domestic violence on women should be combatted by more stringent police and court protection, Debattista suggested that unborn children should be protected from harm, and death through abortion, another form of domestic violence, by extending more psychological help, throught pro-life clinics, to women between two minds whether to abortor not.
It seems the ‘omission’ mentioned in the law , this time by the health authorities, to protect the unborn child from harm and death, is still there.
The same report quoted Rebecca Gomperts, the Dutch provider of abortions on the high seas, saying that she estimated that some 300 expectant Maltese mothers aborted every year.
Statistics on this subject should also include the physical, mental and emotional harm done to unborn children through the careless consumption of alcohol, drugs and tobacco by the parents of unborn children immediately before and during the pregnancy.
These could be found in the statistics published annually by the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department of Mater Dei Hospital and the Health Information and Research Directorate of the Department of Health.
These statistics should start being included in reports on domestic violence in Malta. They should also be brought to the attention of the advisory council set up by the new Healthy Lifestyle Act of January 2016. According to article 5.2.(g) of that law, the council has “the duty to encourage a lifelong approach, from conception till old age, to physical activity and a healthy lifestyle”.
It can be very instrumental in bringing about the setting up of the pro-life clinics advocated by Debattista. The health, family and social affairs committees of Parliament can, and should, press also for the setting up of these clinics.
The environment committee should do the same. According to the internationally accepted maxim that “ the womb is the first environment to man”, the womb should also, and always, be protected by law. This also in connection with the politics of the common good which should always include not only the well-being of present and future generations but also that of the 4,000 unborn children born annually inthe Malta.
MUCM suggests that this new concept should be seriously considered also by the Speaker’s proposed “committee of thought” for Parliament, when it is eventually set up. MUCM has already appealed for this new concept to be taken on board by the three political parties during the Convention on the Environment held in January this year by the Nationalist Party. It may now be taken on board as well by the new Democratic Party.
Tony Mifsud, coordinator, Malta Unborn Child Movement.