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By Deborah Gyapong
 OTTAWA -- Abortion remains a heated subject, despite the attempts of the Conservative Justice Minister Rob Nicholson to keep it out of the federal election.
"The Canadian public does not have any viable political option to advance its grave and serious concern to promote and protect human life in the womb," said St. Catharine's Bishop James Wingle.
Wingle said he is disappointed by Nicholson's recent undermining of Conservative MP Ken Epp's 'Unborn Victims of Crime' Bill C-484.
"The bill as it was formulated would have achieved that small recognition that what is heinous about attacking a pregnant woman is that there are two separate victims who are victims of the violence," Wingle said.
Wingle noted Epp's private member's bill "did handstands backwards" to make sure it would not recriminalize abortion. Despite that weakness, Wingle said it had merit. "It would have in fact at least achieved some form of recognition that an unborn child is worthy of concern and protection."
Though Wingle would not comment specifically on Nicholson, who is a Catholic from his diocese, the bishop outlined the responsibility that Catholics and "all right thinking people" have in defending human life.
He pointed to new technology such as ultrasound that reveal the growing child in the womb. "We know we're not talking about lumps of tissue," he said.
He recognized, however, that politics involves "trade offs," and that moving in the direction of "absolute good" may require an incremental approach that Epp's bill represented.
"With the supreme value of life, there is no trading off," Wingle said.
"At the time it would seem the reigning wisdom is if a party opens or reopens the issue of abortion, they think it will disrupt their electoral hopes," he said. "That's a very sad state of affairs."
"We seem to have such immense difficulty to find a public voice to speak cogently, eloquently and coherently about matters of ultimate value."
On August 25, Nicholson promised the Conservative Party would not reopen the abortion debate. He said his government would bring in legislation to make pregnancy an aggravating factor in sentencing to replace Epps bill because the medical community feared it might instill fetal rights.
Catholic Insight Editor Fr. Alphonse de Valk warned the Tories risk alienating their socially conservative base.
"When considered in tandem with past actions, such as squandering the parliamentary vote on so-called same-sex marriage, failing to rein in human rights commissions run amok and not taking steps to overturn the naming of Henry Morgentaler to the Order of Canada, it is clear that the Harper government's initiative to squelch C-484 means it may well lose the support of social conservatives in Canada," de Valk said in a statement. "This will likely have dire electoral consequences for Mr. Harper and the Conservatives in the next election."
Nicholson had moved beyond the Conservative Party's previous refusal to take a position on abortion by undermining Epp's bill, said de Valk.
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Epp, who will not run in the next election, continued to defend his bill on radio and television programs across the country. Eight Conservative MPs said publicly they would continue to support it if it reached third reading.
The Morgentaler Order of Canada also continues to keep the abortion issue alive. On August 28, Campaign Life Coalition (CLC) revealed the names of 105 MPs who publicly oppose the abortionist's receiving Canada's highest honour, including 80 Tories, 23 Liberals and two Bloc Quebecois, but no New Democrats. It also revealed the names of 35 MPs who support it, and 34, including Nicholson, who refused to comment. CLC also noted Prime Minister Harper had distanced himself from the award and called it "divisive."
CLC also commissioned a massive scientific survey in July that showed 56 per cent of Canadians opposed the Morgentaler Award. An Environics poll commissioned by LifeCanada a year ago showed two thirds of Canadians and three out of four women would support legislation to protect unborn crime victims.
Nicholson's Catholic faith and its clash with his public policy may also provide grist for the abortion debate, as it does for Catholic politicians in the United States.
"Your position seems to be parallel, about as liberal as Barack Obama's on abortion," said Reuter's Bureau Chief Randall Palmer at the August 25 news conference. "As a Conservative government . . . why do you insist on, on excluding fetal rights, not trying to do anything about fetal rights?"
Nicholson responded that he did not know what the Democratic presidential nominee's position was.
CJAD Bureau Chief Brian Lilley brought up the problems pro-choice Catholics like Democratic vice presidential nominee Joseph Biden face in the United States. "I want to ask how, as a Justice Minister, and as a Roman Catholic, you feel coming here and saying my government will not move forward on giving fetal rights because it's something that would go against the, the rules of your church?" he asked.
"I'm proud to be a part of this government and I realize that this is an issue that divides Canadians but we have been very clear as a government that we are not reopening this debate," Nicholson responded.
-- Courtesy of Canadian Catholic News. Please do not reprint without permission.
Related stories:
Archbishop of Montreal returns Order of Canada award due to Morgentaler flap
The controversial decision to give abortion doctor Henry Morgentaler the Order of Canada has prompted Jean-Claude Cardinal Turcotte, the archbishop of Montreal, to return his award. Turcotte, who received the prestigious honour in 1996, said he could no longer stay on the sidelines because he doesn't want anyone to have doubts about his position on abortion.
Canadian Press, September 11
Morgentaler protest: Cardinal to return Order of Canada
Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte, the Roman Catholic archbishop of Montreal, is returning his Order of Canada to protest again Henry Morgentaler's being named to the order. The nomination of the prominent abortion-rights activist sparked a heated public debate this summer, and Turcotte is trying to reignite it by asking Canadians to consider the issue seriously before voting in the Oct. 14 federal election.
CanWest News Service, September 12
Also: National Post
September 18/2008
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