Zimbabwe legislator Prisca Mupfumira says it is unthinkable to discuss abortion in Zimbabwe because the country has just abolished the death penalty.
Speaking in the Senate today, Mupfumira said allowing abortion would be the greatest form of injustice, hypocrisy and double standards.
“To even find ourselves discussing at what point it is acceptable to terminate life is in itself deeply troubling. It feels alien to our identity as Africans, as Zimbabweans, to value life from its very beginning on the right to life,” she said.
“Mr President, our starting point is clear. Section 48 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe guarantees the right to life. It makes no distinction between the born and the unborn. If we as lawmakers, have sworn to uphold the Constitution, we must equally protect the life of the child in the womb, the unborn child – mwana anokosha.
“We are a country that recently abolished the death penalty, recognising the sanctity of every human life, even for those who have committed grievous crimes. How then can we contemplate ending the life of an innocent child who has committed no crime? That would be the greatest form of injustice, hypocrisy and double standards.”
Full contribution:
HON. SEN. MUPFUMIRA: Thank you Mr. President for allowing me to contribute to this motion. I rise today not just as a legislator but as a woman, a mother, a grandmother and as a representative of millions of Zimbabwean women and families who hold sacred the values of life, family, faith and community. As we gather to deliberate on the proposal to legalise or liberalise abortion in Zimbabwe, we must be guided by the foundational principles of our nation, our Constitution, our culture, our faith and collective morality. This debate strikes at the very heart of who we are as a people.
To even find ourselves discussing at what point it is acceptable to terminate life is in itself deeply troubling. It feels alien to our identity as Africans, as Zimbabweans, to value life from its very beginning on the right to life. Mr. President, our starting point is clear. Section 48 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe guarantees the right to life. It makes no distinction between the born and the unborn. If we as lawmakers, have sworn to uphold the Constitution, we must equally protect the life of the child in the womb, the unborn child – mwana anokosha. We are a country that recently abolished the death penalty, recognising the sanctity of every human life, even for those who have committed grievous crimes. How then can we contemplate ending the life of an innocent child who has committed no crime? That would be the greatest form of injustice, hypocrisy and double standards. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states plainly that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security. Everyone including the unborn child, life begins at conception. The laws on exceptions are very clear in Zimbabwe. We have them.
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