Media Release 29 April 2010

WOMEN'S HEALTH WEST REJECT FINN'S ANTI-WOMAN SPIN

Women's Health West are appalled by vicious comments made by the Western Region Liberal MLA, Bernie Finn, about the Minister for Women's Affairs and Early Childhood Development, Maxine Morand. Finn is clearly out of step with community views.

Minister Morand's kindergarten appearance in her marginal seat prompted Liberal MP Bernie Finn to update the social networking site Facebook with the comment, "Bernie Finn doubts it was such a good idea to allow Early Childhood Destruction Minister Maxine Morand loose in a kindergarten. A few years younger and those kids would be right within her target range!"

He later said it was "sickening" that Ms Morand would use children for electioneering after sponsoring legislation to decriminalise abortion (The Age, Thursday April 29, 2010, pg 3).

Mr Finn ignores the fact that in 2008 the Victorian Parliament with many Liberal MPs, including his leader Ted Baillieu, voted to remove abortion from the Crimes Act, ensuring that abortion was no longer a crime for medical practitioners or women in the community.

"Abortion is one of the many reproductive needs that women can face in their childbearing years," stated Dr Robyn Gregory, CEO of Women's Health West.

"Legal abortion allows for professional development, improvements in service quality, lower costs, more accessible services and the opportunity for women to explore whether or not abortion is the right decision for them.

"Access to safe, legal abortion is also a sign of increasing acceptance of equality for women. Classifying abortion as a crime undermines women's status by implying that they are incapable of making sound, logical and rational decisions and that someone else (a doctor or a politician) must make that decision for them.

"Victorian parliamentarians voted to legalise abortion recognising that it is not the right of the legislature to impose its views on women."

"The majority of MPs in the western region voted to decriminalise abortion, including Marsha Thomson, Wade Noonan, Tim Pallas, Khalil Eideh, Don Nardella and Colleen Hartland," explains Megan Bumpstead, Chair of the Board of Directors of Women's Health West.

"Each of those MPs spoke strongly in support of a woman's right to choose. They made that decision after consulting their own conscience and concluded that a good law is one that supports women's freedom, their choice and their decisions. And I believe it is the role of our elected members to make good laws."

Women's Health West are working with other women's health services across Victoria to interview candidates in the upcoming state election to find out who will ensure that women's health, safety and wellbeing stays on the agenda in Victoria.

MEDIA CONTACT

For more information contact Nicola Harte, Communications Co-ordinator at Women's Health West on 9689 9588 or email nicolah@whwest.org.au
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