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Email: "Spain’s New Abortion on Demand Law Takes Effect Amid Controversy"

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BY LifeSiteNews.com By Matthew Cullinan HoffmanMADRID, July 6, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A new abortion law which will allow the deadly procedure to be provided on demand during the first 14 weeks of pregnancy came into effect in Spain yesterday amid controversy about its constitutionality.The governor of the region of Murcia, as well as other regional and provincial governments, have implied that they will not fully comply with the law unless it is confirmed as constitutional by the nation's Constitutional Tribunal.The President of Murcia, Ramon Luis Valcarcel, said on Sunday that "for the moment there are no reasons to comply" with the law, the "Law of Sexual Health and Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy," due to the fact that it is being contested before the nation's highest court."We will continue taking the juridical path; that's what we're doing. And when all of that is resolved, we will see what is done.  For the moment, there is no reason to comply" with the law, Valcarcel said.The regional government of Navarra as well as the People's Party, which is the more conservative of Spain's two major parties, are seeking to overturn the law before the Constitutional Tribunal.The basis of the suit is a 1985 ruling by the Tribunal, which stated that the rights of a pregnant woman do not have "absolute primacy" over the fetus, which was judged to be a "good that is juridically protected." Only cases of rape, fetal deformity, or danger to the woman's physical or psychological health could override the right to life of the fetus, according to the Tribunal.The new law clearly contradicts the 1985 ruling, although Spain's socialist and pro-abortion Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, may be hoping for a new ruling in the current case that will nullify the old law.The previous law, which permitted abortion in cases of danger to the "psychological health" of the mother in accordance with the 1985 ruling, was exploited by abortion clinics to rationalize the approval of over a million abortions in the years following, using easy diagnoses from physicians who were allegedly paid to produce them.Other regional governments are also reportedly balking at the enforcement of the new law, including Navarra, Galicia, and Madrid.  The government of Navarra has said that it will make referrals to other regions when abortions are requested, but will not perform them in the region itself.  Previous LifeSiteNews coverage:Spain's People's Party Sues Government to Stop New Pro-Abortion Law http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/jun/10060315.htmlLeaders of Spanish Medical Associations Blast Abortion Law http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/may/10051103.htmlKing of Spain Excommunicated Himself by Signing Abortion Law: Human Life International http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/mar/10030501.html http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/spains-new-abortion-on-demand-law-takes-effect-amid-controversy/

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