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More Information on RU-486 Death of Swedish 16-Year Old Girl

UDDEVALLA, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In the wake of publicity about the RU-486 caused death of a Swedish woman, more information has emerged as the girl's mother has told details the government would not provide. The girl, Rebecca Tell Berg, age 16, died on June 3, 2003 after an RU-486 abortion in the west coast city of Uddevalla.

Ja Till Livet, the Swedish pro-life group which broke the story, has sent another communication to LifeSiteNews.com indicating that the girl's mother, Catharina Tell, is broken-hearted - and angry: "Rebecca didn't want to have a chemical abortion," she says. Even for abortion supporters, the new information in the case raises the need for laws requiring parents be informed of minors' decisions to obtain abortions.

According to the report by a division of the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare in Gothenburg, "a young woman bled to death as a direct consequence of the (RU-486) treatment." The report laid no fault in how the medical staff administered the treatment, despite the fact that the girl died.

Rebecca was seven weeks and two days pregnant and chose to have an RU-486 abortion, according to the report. One week after meeting with a gynaecologist, she returned to the hospital where she was given three 200 mg Mifegyne pills. Two days later she returned and was given two 0,2 mg pills of Cytotec (Misoprostol).

She took the medicine at 8.25 am. She was reported to have been very tired, felt sick and slept most of the time. Bleeding started at 3 pm that same day and the patient received pain medication. At 4.30 pm the patient was able to return home after a "big blob" had "come out". A follow-up visit was scheduled for one month later as she left the hospital.

Rebecca was living with her mother, but she had been staying with her boyfriend, Niklas Mattsson, 19, at his apartment the night before she died. In the morning, she was again very tired, and Mattsson tried to persuade her to visit the hospital again. Since Rebecca had been told that she might bleed for two weeks, she chose to stay at home.

Mattsson put breakfast on the table, but when he came home in the afternoon, he found the breakfast untouched, and the girl dead in the shower.

Rebecca's mother found out about the death from a policeman and a vicar, who came to her house. She blames the hospital for her daughter's death. "Rebecca didn't want to have a chemical abortion, but the doctor told her that it was much better than having a suction abortion," she said. Currently in Seden 44.3% of the 31,000 abortions per year are chemically induced.

A second report, the Bohuslän county coroner's report also concluded that the girl had died as a result of blood loss following a chemically induced abortion.

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Ontario RC Teachers Union Vote On Homosexual Marriage Resolution Dies

However, resolution passes encouraging inclusive language re: sexual orientation

TORONTO, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The 600 voting delegates at the annual general meeting of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association (OECTA) did not vote on a resolution approving homosexual marriage. The meeting which concluded Monday was delayed by long debates over union fees, and the vote on same-sex marriage "did not come to the floor" since time elapsed, an OECTA official told LifeSiteNews.com today.

LifeSiteNews.com reported last month that Human Rights Committee of the Catholic teachers union representing some 36,000 Catholic teachers had a proposed resolution (no. 151) stating: "That the Association communicate with the federal government its support for the passing of the legislation changing the definition of marriage to allow for same-sex unions."

The measure may well have passed since another homosexual activist measure did pass Monday. Delegates approved a new policy to encourage all members to use inclusive language and model this use in all OECTA business. Speaking on the resolution an OECTA Human Rights Committee spokesperson said, "It is important that as teachers in Catholic schools, we ensure that the language we use does not alienate anyone based upon gender, race, creed, ethnicity, sexual orientation or mental or physical ability."

The passage of the resolution came a day after homosexual-marriage proponent Marilyn Byers addressed the Human Rights Committee Caucus on building inclusive school communities. Byers, the founder of the York chapter of homosexual-activist group Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, said, "We must stop preaching love while modelling hate. Just as we reject slavery and sexism, we can bring an end to homophobia through education. As Christians we must stand with those who believe discrimination is a crime."

See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Ontario Catholic Teachers Association Mulls Promotion of Homosexual 'Marriage'
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/feb/04021904.html
Ontario Catholic Teachers Union Proposes More Pro-Gay Measures
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/feb/04022307.html

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Homosexual Activism Pits Third World and Vatican Against UN Secretariat, Canada and EU

NEW YORK, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In one of the most open displays of disagreement at the United Nations, the more than 50 countries represented by the Organization of the Islamic Conference voiced strenuous objections to a January 20 decision of the United Nations Secretary General to offer homosexual benefits to the international organization's employees who hailed from countries where such benefits are permitted. In a rare address to this particular committee, the Vatican added its voice to the concerns and warned that the UN provision "in essence, constituted progressive development of international law."

Alireza Tootoonchian of Iran led the charge noting that the change in the UN's system of addressing family status was the responsibility of member states of the international organization and not the Secretariat. In very strong language, considering UN diplomacy, the delegate said, "Whereas no decision has been taken by the Assembly to change the long-established scope of the family definition for the purposes of entitlements, there was no justification" for the measure. He said, the OIC "is not only seriously concerned about extension of the scope of the family definition for the purposes of entitlements, but also opposed the presumption" that the homosexual couples could receive benefits since that involved "delicate administrative and financial issues that should be dealt with, first and foremost, by intergovernmental bodies."

The Indonesian, Syrian, Sudanese, Tunisian and Kuwaiti representatives concurred with the OIC statement and all demanded an explanation from the UN hierarchy. The Egyptian representative used very strong language implying that the redefinition of family status in the UN's bulletin concerning staff was an "attempt to jeopardize the role of the General Assembly." He said, "The attempt to impose definitions, which are not agreed upon in the multilateral intergovernmental setting, is unacceptable." The representatives of Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh called for the measure to be withdrawn.

Interestingly, the representative from Cameroon recalled that the discussion over such benefits had been debated several years ago at the UN without resolution. He was unpleasantly surprised that the UN Secretariat had gone ahead and implemented the decision autocratically. "It seems to indicate a lack of respect for Member States," he said. He supported the proposals by the representative of Iran and asked that the bulletin be withdrawn.

The Irish representative, Ms. Stanley, speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated States, called the UN measure extending benefits to homosexual couples "a welcome step, reflecting the Secretary-General's determination to modernize the human resources management."

Canada's Jerry Kramer, speaking on behalf of Canada and New Zealand, praised the UN move and said it was simply an administrative decision to be made by the Secretary-General as chief administrative officer. He said the Secretary General was obliged to do it. "To do otherwise would merely foster discrimination within the staff, whereby some people received family benefits according to the norms of their countries and others did not," he said.

Speaking for the Vatican, Mr. Klee said, the issue of family status for United Nations entitlement was not just a routine administrative matter. He said, "domestic partnerships are being equated with a family," which is "in conflict with the understanding of the family in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and its implementing conventions." The provision, he said, "in essence, constituted progressive development of international law, which would best be discussed in an open-ended debate between Member States,
rather than left to the Administration."

See the full UN release on the meeting:
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/gaab3605.doc.htm

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South Dakota Abortion Ban Dead: Technical Veto Rejected by Senate

PIERRE, S.D., March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Bill that would have made abortion illegal in South Dakota has died. The technical changes suggested by Governor Mike Rounds were rejected Monday by the Senate upper chamber, effectively killing the bill.

"The bill is simply dead," Rounds told reporters later Monday, responding to confusion from supporters of the bill. He told reporters that the bill died because the Senate would not approve his suggested changes.

The house voted 52-16 earlier in the day to uphold the Governor's changes, before being sent to the senate. The Governor's technical veto included a recommendation that existing laws remain in place in the event of a court challenge of the new law.

See previous LifeSite coverage at:
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/mar/04030902.html

Read local coverage at:
http://www.yankton.net/stories/031604/new_20040316022.shtml

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Writer Affirms The Passion will Inspire more Faith-Based Films

"The Passion will be remembered as an historic turning point"

NEW YORK, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A USA Today review of The Passion of the Christ affirms that filmmakers "need not feel timid about affirming religious values out of fear of public conflict" considering the overwhelming success of the film. USA Today's Michael Medved asserts that more filmmakers will be following the Passion's trend since the movie, which was considered "offensive" by some groups, nevertheless set box-office records. As well, the relatively low $30 million cost to make the film, as compared to, for example, the Titanic's $200 million budget, makes the movie a more attractive venture to emulate from a financial perspective.

Medved quotes Robert Bucksbaum, president of the industry tracking firm ReelSource, who said that moviegoers who attended The Passion of The Christ were typically "turned off by Hollywood, but this was seen as something completely out of the mainstream."

Medved cites surveys which suggest that four times more Americans attend church services every week than go to the movies. "Until now, most producers disregarded this faith-based audience, claiming that they seldom went to the movies anyway so it made no sense to appeal to them. The explosive response to The Passion blows that theory to smithereens: The movie's projected box office gross is some $400 million in its North American theatrical run alone," he writes.

Medved predicts that "The Passion will be remembered as an historic turning point, rather than a freakish anomaly or an isolated experiment. The movie has helped Hollywood discover not just a new formula, but also a new audience."

Read the USA Today column at: http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2004-03-14-medved_x.htm

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Poll Reveals "The Passion of the Christ" Does Not Foster Anti-Semitism

Jim Caviezel, who played Christ role, meets pope in Rome

NEW YORK, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Institute for Jewish and Community Research has conducted a survey to determine if there has been a change in anti-Semitic sentiment arising from the viewing of Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. The poll found that, contrary to what some Jews have claimed, 83 percent felt that the film had no impact on the degree to which they perceived Jews to be the killers of Christ. Nine percent said they were less inclined to blame Jews for Christ's death, whereas two percent were more likely.

Dr. Gary Tobin, president of ICJR, told CNSNews that "…so far the Passion of the Christ is not producing any significant anti-Jewish backlash. The questions raised about the anti-Jewish images in the movie helped bring the question of the role of Jews in the death of Christ out in the open. It is better to have dialogue and honest discussion and trust that the bond between Christians and Jews in America is strong," Tobin said. The ICJR polled 1,003 adults nationwide in early March.

In related news, the Vatican confirmed that Jim Caviezel, who portrays Jesus in the movie, had a brief audience with the pope on Monday. Caviezel also viewed a private screening of the movie with the Legionaries of Christ while in Rome.

The Catholic News Agency is reporting that several Catholic churches in Cuba are converting into theatres, in order to show The Passion of the Christ. The move has been given the blessing of the Cuban Bishops Conference.

Félix Pérez Riera, secretary of the conference, told the news agency EFE that the movie "can contribute to serious spiritual reflection, and even to a personal encounter with Jesus Christ, who sustains our faith and hope."

Read CNSNews coverage of the poll at: http://www.cnsnews.com//ViewNation.asp?Page=\Nation\archive\200403\NAT20040315a....

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Husband of Chinese Forced Abortion Victim Cannot be Refused US Asylum

SAN FRANCISCO, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Kui Rong Ma, the husband of a Chinese woman who underwent a forced abortion at the hands of the Chinese government, cannot be refused asylum in the US. Congress allows as many as 1000 refugees a year, including spouses, who are fleeing from forced abortion or sterilization policies in communist-controlled countries.

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) had refused Mr. Ma's application on the grounds that they were not legally married according to the policies of the Chinese government. It was on this pretext that Mrs. Ma was forced to undergo an abortion.

The three member panel of the Court of Appeals, in their decision wrote, "The BIA's refusal to grant asylum to an individual who cannot register his marriage with the Chinese government on account of a law promulgated as part of its coercive population control policy, a policy deemed by Congress to be oppressive and persecutory, contravenes the statute and leads to absurd and wholly unacceptable results."

Though China's coercive population control policies, including restriction of marriage, compulsory sterilization, forced abortion and infanticide, have been the subject of severe criticism from the Bush administration, they are, despite denials, still supported by population-control groups like the United Nations Population Fund.

Grand Forks Herald (AP) coverage:
http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/news/8195364.htm

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Wisconsin Files Complaint Against Pharmacist For Refusing Abortifacient Prescription

MADISON, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Advocates of conscience protection laws for pharmacists have long warned that the lack of legislation leaves Christian pharmacists in an impossible dilemma. The Wisconsin state Department of Regulation and Licensing has filed a complaint against an objecting pharmacist with the Wisconsin Pharmacy Examining Board. The pharmacist, Neil Noesen, refused to fill a woman's prescription for abortifacient "contraceptive" pills, and declined to refer her prescription
to another pharmacy.

Noesen had a verbal agreement with his employer, Kmart pharmacy in Menomonie, that he would not be required to fill prescriptions, such as birth control pills, and that he would be allowed to defer those prescriptions to other pharmacists on duty. Noesen informed the patient that he was not required to fill the prescription but that another pharmacist could do so later. He was alone on duty. The complaint against him states that the woman asked where she could have her prescription filled, but "because of his personal religious objections, (he) refused to provide (her) with that information."

Kmart has a history of firing conscientious pharmacists for refusing to dispense abortifacients. Karen L. Brauer, a Cincinnati area pharmacist was fired by Kmart in 1996 for the same reason. In 2003, Wisconsin bill 63 was introduced to protect against, "employment discrimination based on creed and exemption from liability and discipline for pharmacists who refuse to dispense for abortions, assisted suicides, and euthanasia." Noesen testified in the Wisconsin legislature, "We first have the duty to do no harm. Then, the duty to do good. It (is) unethical to force (medical) practitioners to participate in cooperation with abortions, assisted suicides, and euthanasia."

Noesen faces the summary suspension of his licence to practice if the board finds against him. The case is scheduled to be heard by an administrative law judge in May and Noesen vowed to contest the Wisconsin Pharmacy Examining Board's charges of unprofessional conduct.

Wisconsin State Journal coverage:
http://www.madison.com/wisconsinstatejournal/local/70273.php

Protectino of Conscience website, information about this and many similar cases:
http://www.consciencelaws.org/Examining-ConscienceIssues/Background/Contracept/B...

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Kingston, New York Ministers Charged for Conducting Homosexual "Marriages"

KINGSTON, N.Y., March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Two Unitarian Universalist ministers -- Kay Greenleaf and Dawn Sangrey -- were charged with criminal offences Monday for conducting 13 homosexual "marriages" over the weekend.

District Attorney for Ulster County, Donald Williams, said that the law prohibiting homosexual "marriages" makes no distinction between religious ministers and officials who hold public office. Williams is likely referring to New Paltz Mayor Jason West who last month was charged with 19 counts of solemnizing a marriage without a license. Williams told The Associated Press that the charges were laid because the marriages were "drastically different" from religious ceremonies, since Greenleaf and Sangrey stated publicly that they were civil marriages.

"It is not our intention to interfere with anyone's right to express their religious beliefs, including the right of members of the clergy to perform ceremonies where couples are united solely in the eyes of the church or any other faith," Williams said in defence of his actions. Some groups have charged that Williams is violating the constitution, which promises religious freedom.

A statement released to the press said that Unitarian Universalist Association ministers have been "marrying" homosexuals for 35 years.

Meanwhile, openly homosexual Episcopal bishop Gene Robinson, ordained last year as bishop of New Hampshire, told reporters Monday that "If the civil right of marriage were to become legal in New Hampshire, I think we'd be married in a minute," referring to his partner Mark Andrew. Robinson is a 56-year-old divorced father of two.

Also, in related news, former Surgeon General Dr. Jocelyn Elders, in an address to a national meeting of the million-member United Methodist Women's organization, said that the Bush administration "has no business interfering" in the issue of homosexual marriage. "I see no problem with gay couples marrying," she said. The comment came as a surprise to the group. The official stance of the United Methodist Church is that homosexuality is "incompatible with Christian teaching."

Elders was appointed Surgeon General by former President Bill Clinton, who later called for her resignation after Elders appealed for an increase in sex education, including "self stimulation" as an alternative to sex outside of marriage.

Defenders of marriage have been arguing that all homosexual persons have the same right as anyone to marry a person of the opposite sex. They just do not have the right, it is emphasized, to "marry" someone of the same sex since that would not be a marriage.

Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage "Same-Sex Marriage Agenda Steamrolls On in US" at: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/mar/04030505.html

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Native Culture Trumped by Homosexuality: Court Awards Custody to Lesbian Mohawk

Woman Judge demeans Mohawks as "isolated and uniformed" segment of community

OTTAWA, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In a case that has pitted one facet of the liberal agenda against another, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has ruled in favour of homosexual activists against the claims of a Mohawk father in granting custody of his children to two lesbian women.

The father, Stacey Boots argued that the aboriginal culture does not accept homosexuality. He said that the children would be ostracized from their own community if custody was awarded to the mother, Devona Sharrow, who lives in a lesbian relationship with a non-aboriginal woman from the US. The children have been raised in the traditional Mohawk manner, are in school on the Akwesasne reserve and speak the Mohawk language. The children's paternal grandmother, a Mohawk "clan mother" testified that the children would suffer ostracism because of the decision.

Even the spokesman for aboriginal homosexual activists has admitted that homosexual aboriginals, who are referred to as "two-spirited," have more problems in aboriginal communities than do gays and lesbians in the general population. Said Art Zoccole, executive director of the Two-Spirited People of the First Nation, "Generally, right across the country, homophobia is common is our communities."

Justice Heidi Polowin ruled that the children would be better off with the mother who has, despite her lesbianism, promised to raise the children according to Mohawk traditions. Justice Polowin compared the decision to a Supreme Court of Canada ruling about Theodore Edwards, who is black, and his former girlfriend Kimberly Van de Perre, who is white. She said, "I am bound by law and common sense to decide this issue on the basis of the evidence ... and not on unfounded fears or prejudices or on a reaction to the vociferous comments of an isolated and uniformed segment of the community."

National Post coverage:
http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=d933b9e1-2f3c-452...

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Euthanasia Debate at Upscale Toronto High School Reveals Hope for Future

TORONTO, March 16, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A recent debate on euthanasia at Upper Canada College in Toronto showed the students were open to life. Natalie Hudson of Toronto Right to Life squared off against Ruth VonFuchs of the Toronto chapter of the Right to Die Society of Canada.

While Hudson's presentation was well received, VonFuchs' found herself challenged by students in the audience. One student admitted that her own life was nearly lost when her parents were counseled to not go through with surgery when she was a baby. The doctors had predicted that her condition would make her "quality of life" so poor that it would be better if she were allowed to die. Her parents fought for her life. She stated that she had the surgery and is a perfectly healthy young women today.

Near the end of the debate, a teacher, noticeably moved, stood up and shared his experience with the audience. He had been part of an effort to keep a newly injured and disabled friend from despair and suicide. He admitted that they had "forced" him to continue through that period of his life. Ten years later, shortly before he died of natural causes, he thanked all of those who had fought for his life and claimed that the last ten years had been happier and more fulfilling than all of the fifty prior to his accident.

Mrs. Von Fuchs apologized to the teacher, claiming that she did not intend to make any blanket statements on euthanasia. In response, Miss Hudson stated that she would definitely like to make a blanket statement. "Human life is an absolute good and always worth fighting for. Nothing is greater than life and we must encourage and support it at every opportunity".

In the afternoon Natalie Hudson debated Professor Wayne Sumner, a Princeton graduate and professor of Philosophy at the University of Toronto. Hudson was successful in pointing out the holes in his line of reasoning.

His strongest point was an argument for autonomy. People must be given the ability to control the time and manner of their deaths, he suggested. This, he proposed, would mitigate both the physical and emotional suffering of death.

Hudson retorted that, on the contrary "One persons choice becomes another person's duty." She said, "When we open up the laws of society and allow individuals to determine their death, we place the same responsibility of that decision on all others who are in a similar state. Without the protection of the law, many, many patients would feel the burden of making a life and death decision foisted upon them in their time of need. Doctors would be forced to compromise their commitment to life, and patients, feeling that they are a burden on society, would opt for death as the most 'unselfish' choice."

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LifeSite NewsBytes

China Suffering From Aids
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/bate200403150919.asp

Spam continues to lure readers: Study
http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040315.gtspammar15/BNStory/...

POLL: 80 percent of Alabamians oppose gay marriage
http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040315/APN/403150524

NY ministers charged for marrying gays
http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=228271&category=&BCCode=&...

Abortions in Singapore falls to lowest level in nearly 30 years 12,749 in 2002
http://thestaronline.com/news/story.asp?file=/2004/3/15/latest/16433Abortions&se...

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