Saturday, June 28, 2008

A VERY SAD STORY

I read this story on one of the forums that I am on. Its a tragic story all the way around. An eleven year girl was raped by her uncle. That is bad enough but the religious entities in Romania feel that the young girl should proceed with the pregnancy and place the baby for adoption. As an adoptee, I would rather have been aborted if this was the situation that I was conceived in. I would not want my natural mother to face such hardship.

Here is the story because I can't find this link.

Abortion for rape victim, 11, opposed by churches
Alison Mutler The Associated Press
June 27, 2008
BUCHAREST, Romania - Twenty church groups on Thursday urged a government committee not to allow an 11-year-old girl who was raped by her uncle go to Britain for an abortion.The anti-abortion Christian Orthodox groups also threatened to press charges if the girl were allowed to have an abortion in Romania on exceptional grounds.Their position was in contrast to the official stand of the Romanian Orthodox Church, which said the decision should be left to the girl's family.A government committee is to decide today whether the girl can go to Britain for an abortion or must continue the pregnancy. A Romanian living in Britain has offered to pay the costs.


The girl's pregnancy became known earlier this month when her parents took her to a doctor because she appeared unwell. She told doctors she had been raped by her 19-year-old uncle, who since has disappeared.She is 20 weeks pregnant. The legal limit for abortions in Romania is 14 weeks. Abortions can be carried out after that time only to save the life of the mother.In Britain an abortion is legal up to 24 weeks if two doctors decide that the risk to a woman's physical or mental health will be greater if she continues with the pregnancy than if she ends it.


The case has bitterly split the medical community, child-rights groups and the public.The National Child Protection Authority has said the girl should be allowed to have an abortion because she is already traumatized by the experience of rape and pregnancy.
The National Doctors Council said the rights of the fetus should be considered and the pregnancy should go ahead.

A continuance of the story is found at this link and the story below.

Romanian girl can have abortion
16 hours ago

BUCHAREST (AFP) — An inter-ministerial panel in Romania ruled Friday that an 11-year-old girl who became pregnant after allegedly being raped by her uncle can have an abortion.

"The committee has decided that a voluntary termination of the pregnancy can be carried out," said health ministry official and panel member Vlad Iliescu.

An abortion was allowed under Romanian law because the girl was a victim of sexual abuse, Iliescu said, adding that she faced "major risks to her mental health" if the pregnancy continued.

The committee also decided that no changes in current relevent legislation were needed, simply "clarifications with regard to the exceptional circumstances" allowing abortions to go ahead.

Under Romanian law, abortions are allowed up until the 14th week of the pregnancy if the mother's life is endangered or if the foetus suffers from malformation.

The girl's parents discovered the pregnancy when she underwent a medical check-up after she complained of stomach pains. By then, she was already 17 weeks pregnant.

Two medical panels have so far examined the girl, who is now 21 weeks pregnant -- the first finding in favour of an abortion, the second against.

The second panel found that "having examined the girl ... the pregnancy is proceeding naturally and termination should therefore not be imposed".

"The fact that the pregnancy stemmed from rape was not taken into account by the panel, for two reasons: one, because rape has not been proven; and two, because the penal code does not allow for any exceptions," said Vica Todosiciuc, head of the Cuza Voda maternity section in the northeastern city of Iasi, last week.

"This was a very difficult decision for the doctors to make. They searched for a medical reason which would allow them to authorise a termination, but none was found," Todosiciuc said.

The inter-ministerial panel was therefore asked to make a final ruling on the case.

The girl's family said this week they wanted to travel to Britain for an abortion, and a Romanian in Britain had offered to finance the costs.


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