By Gudrun Schultz
Malta, April 30, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A Dutch abortion boat that was granted a license from the Netherlands government to enter international waters does not have an open door to operate in countries where the practice is outlawed, according to a report published April 28 by the Times of Malta.
The boat’s license restricts abortion activity to countries where a “cooperation agreement has been reached with a regional hospital in the country of whose shores the facility is operating,” Paul Vincenti, CEO with Gift of Life, told the Times.
“This boat is simply part of the global pro-abortion machine. Its intentions are to challenge the sovereign laws of those countries where abortion is illegal and to agitate the citizens of those countries that they visit.”
Pointing out that the boat’s permit is not as “watertight” as founder Rebecca Gomperts suggested in initial statements reported by media, Vincenti said any country where abortion is illegal could make it very difficult for Women on Waves to operate, under the terms of the license.
Gift of Life contacted the prime minister immediately after the boat’s organizers announced their intention to target Malta, asking whether he would allow the Women on Waves boat to enter Maltese waters, the Malta Star reported. The Malta Home Affairs Ministry has said it would respond in “strict accordance” with Maltese law if the ship attempted to sail into Malta’s waters.
“If the abortion ship enters Maltese territorial waters we intend to mobilise the island,” Vincenti told the Star. “They have no right to enter into a country where 93 percent are pro-life.”
The boat was banned from operating outside Dutch waters in 2004, under the previous government. Under the terms of the new license, Women on Waves has permission from Dutch authorities to enter international waters and hand out “abortion pills” to women up to seven weeks pregnant, under the restrictions requiring an agreement with a local hospital.
Gomperts has pledged to seek an increase of the allowable gestation rate for abortions to 12 weeks, according to coverage by the ANP.
See previous LifeSiteNews coverage:
Dutch Abortion Boat Granted License for International Abortions
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/apr/07042403.html
Dutch Abortion Boat Sails for Portugal
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/aug/04082303.html
No Abortions in International Waters for Dutch Abortion Boat, Court Rules
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/aug/04081908.html
Dutch Abortion Boat Merely a Propaganda Machine Say Pro-Life Leaders
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2003/jul/03070704.html