Public appeal for funds: BERSIH 2.0 needs your support

http://www.bersih.org/?p=5389 Press Statement, 23 August 2012.

When BERSIH 2.0 was launched in April 2010 as a fully non-partisan movement asking for urgent electoral reforms, no one anticipated just how strongly the Malaysian public would respond. The swift and courageous support from all walks of life, many of whom also braved the streets of Kuala Lumpur (and in many other places around the world) on 9 July 2011 and again on 28 April have made it clear that the call for free and fair elections is a sentiment which echoes strongly in our nation.

BERSIH 2.0 has seen an outpouring of support from the public in the last two years and it has enabled the push for reforms to be made, to the point where the government has finally begun to respond. However, their response has not always been positive. In fact, the government often appears more interested in “shooting the messenger” rather than focusing on the message of hand: cleaning up the electoral system.

RM1 campaign for clean and fair elections

As the next general elections looms closer, BERSIH 2.0 seeks your support. The work still needs to continue and we need to work together for all of us to carry on. Therefore, BERSIH 2.0 is now launching a fund raising campaign to ask every Malaysians to support us by donating to the BERSIH 2.0 “Make a difference with RM1” campaign for Clean and Fair Elections. We aim to raise RM250,000 to reflect the 250,000 brave Malaysians who turned up for BERSIH 3.0 : Duduk Bantah on 28 April 2012.

Specifically, the funds will go to:

Medical and Legal Expenses of Victims of Police Brutality

1. Supporting the victims of police brutality during and after 28 April who have courageously come forward to seek justice. BERSIH 2.0 wishes to support them if they choose to file lawsuits against the authorities as well as to cover their medical expenses.
2. The authorities have decided to launch a civil suit against 10 members of the BERSIH 2.0 steering committee for alleged damages amounting to RM122,000 that were incurred during the Bersih 3.0 “duduk bantah” assembly. The government also wants general damages, interest and a declaration that Bersih breached Section 6(2)(g) of the Peaceful Assembly Act (PAA), despite the fact that the government also declared the PAA as a revolutionary law which would facilitate peaceful assemblies.
3. Meanwhile, DBKL has also has sent a notice of demand to co-chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan and committee member Maria Chin Abdullah, demanding compensation of RM351,203.45 for “losses” incurred during the same event. This includes damage to “landscaping and trees, the cost of setting up metal barricades, cost of transport and support staff, damage to signboards and barriers, as well as overtime allowances, food, drink and transport costs for law enforcers”.

The two wholly unfair charges by the government are seen as targeted attacks against BERSIH 2.0 aimed at derailing the call for free and fair elections. Thus, BERSIH 2.0 urgently appeals to all Malaysians to maintain its focus on this crucial issue and support the effort in whatever ways that they can.

Many lawyers have come forward to volunteer their legal services to BERSIH 2.0 victims as well as to the Steering Committee members who had been sued by the government. While their services are free, there are still expenses to be paid out especially filing fees, transportation and other administrative costs.

Funds raised will cover bail money (where applicable), legal administrative expenses and medical costs. [RM150,000]

BERSIH Awareness Campaign – Keluar Mengundi Lawan Penipuan

Funds are also required for the continued awareness of the various issues surrounding the 8 demands of BERSIH 2.0 to be spread to greater numbers of Malaysians. The awareness campaign activities will cover Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak. We will be printing leaflets, producing short cartoon video clips for easy dissemination, conduct workshops and ceramahs to highlight the eight demands of BERSIH 2.0, activities to encourage young voters to vote and be involved, and lastly for BERSIH 2.0 to develop our own BERSIH.TV so that we can have our voices heard.

We are embarking on campaigns throughout the country to bring the message to as many people as possible. With your backing, the core message of “Keluar Mengundi Lawan Penipuan” will reach far and wide, thus putting pressure on the authorities to implement the necessary changes and for you as a voter to decide wisely.

Funds raised will cover BERSIH 2.0 awareness campaign and communications [RM100,000]

The funds collected will be regularly updated on our website with audited accounts made available.

SUPPORT “BERSIH RM1 CAMPAIGN” AND SEND YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO EMPOWER, BERSIH 2.0 Secretariat at:

Account No: 12380000661-10-0

Account Name: Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor

Bank: CIMB Islamic, Section 52, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia

Thank you. Salam BERSIH!

Steering Committee

Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections 2.0 (BERSIH 2.0)

The Steering Committee of BERSIH 2.0 comprises:

Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan (Co-Chairperson), Datuk A. Samad Said (Co-Chairperson), Ahmad Shukri Abdul Razab, Andrew Ambrose, Andrew Khoo, Anne Lasimbang, Arul Prakkash, Arumugam K., Awang Abdillah, Dr Farouk Musa, Hishamuddin Rais, Liau Kok Fah, Maria Chin Abdullah, Matthew Vincent, Niloh Ason, Richard Y W Yeoh, Dr Subramaniam Pillay, Dato’ Dr Toh Kin Woon, Dr Wong Chin Huat, Dato’ Yeo Yang Poh and Zaid Kamaruddin.

‘Guilty until proven innocent’ law applies to Umno Youth in Facebook probe #Stop114A

By Ida Lim. Published by The Malaysian Insider on 22 August 2012.

The burden of proof is on Umno Youth to show that it is not the publisher of controversial remarks suggesting that a vote for Pakatan Rakyat (PR) will result in Christianity becoming the country’s official religion, due to recent amendments to the Evidence Act, lawyers have said.

Umno Youth has claimed that the person who put up the poster with the controversial remarks was “unauthorised” to do so and that the page was not its official Facebook page.

The poster, which was uploaded last Saturday and taken down the same day, appeared to suggest that votes for federal opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) will cause Islam to be replaced by Christianity as the country’s official religion.

It had read: “Jika anda setuju untuk jadikan KRISTIAN sebagai agama rasmi persekutuan Malaysia, teruskan sokongan anda kepada Pakatan Rakyat. (If you agree to make CHRISTIANITY the official religion of the federation of Malaysia, continue supporting Pakatan Rakyat.) ‘God bless you my son’.”

If Umno Youth is brought to court over the “unauthorised” Facebook post, it would be the test case for the newly-enforced Section 114A of the Evidence Act that has already seen widespread opposition from the public.

Section 114A makes even coffee shops offering free Wi-Fi services liable for any defamatory or criminal acts of customers using computers at their premises The new law creates a presumption that any registered user of network services is presumed to be the publisher of a publication sent from a computer linked to that network service if he cannot show otherwise The Section also provides that any “person whose name photograph or pseudonym appears on any publication depicting himself as the owner host administrator editor or sub-editor or who in any manner facilitates to publish or re-publish the publication is presumed to have published or re-published the contents of the publication unless the contrary is proved ”.

Read more here: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/guilty-until-proven-innocent-law-applies-to-umno-youth-in-facebook-probe/

Related reports:

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=%2F2012%2F8%2F23%2Fnation%2F20120823113734&sec=nation&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Section 114A of the Evidence Act cannot be used in the case of Umno Youth's alleged seditious posting because the amendment is based on presumption of fact and not presumption of guilt, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz.

“The amendment is only a form of procedure. It can only be invoked if a person is charged under other laws and the court is convinced to use it to shift the burden of proof to the accused,” he told a press conference Thursday.

Nazri said the accused can then prove their innocence through a balance of probabilities, as how Umno Youth has done by making a police report as soon as possible.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/8/23/nation/11898237&sec=nation

City CID chief Senior Asst Comm Datuk Ku Chin Wah said the probe would not be conducted under Section 114A of the Evidence Act, which had been criticised by various quarters.

“Our initial investigation is carried out under Section 233. Once this is completed, we will pass our investigation papers to the Attorney-General who will then decide whether this should continue under the same Act or under Section 114A or other sections,” he told reporters here yesterday.

Ambiga Ignores Threats In Fight For Fairer Malaysian Vote

By Ranjeetha Pakiam and Liau Y-Sing. Published by Bloomberg.com on 22 August 2012.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-21/ambiga-ignores-threats-in-fight-for-fairer-malaysian-vote.html

Ambiga Sreenevasan got anonymous death threats for her work on the rights of women whose husbands convert to Islam in Muslim-majority Malaysia four years ago. After leading a rally calling for electoral reforms in April, she was accused of treason by a ruling party lawmaker.

The 55-year-old former Malaysian Bar Council president, who received the International Women of Courage Award from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2009, hasn’t stopped challenging the government’s human rights policies. “They underestimate right-thinking Malaysians,” she said in an interview. “We don’t like bullying.”

While Prime Minister Najib Razak, who must call elections by early 2013, has agreed to some of the demands of Ambiga’s Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections, or Bersih, for fairer voting procedures such as the use of indelible ink, his government has declared the civil society group illegal and she has become the focus of personal attacks. Opposition leaders have championed Bersih’s campaign and called the attacks racist.

“She is seen as somebody who’s a professional, has the aspirations of the middle class, believes in things like human rights and good governance,” said James Chin, a professor of political science at the Malaysian campus of Australia’s Monash University outside Kuala Lumpur. “She symbolizes that: Somebody who holds the Malaysian authorities accountable for their actions.”

Triple Minority

The mother of two believes her “demonization” has intensified because government supporters want to undermine the credibility of the non-partisan campaign for free and fair elections. As an Indian, Hindu and woman, “I’m a minority in every sense of the word and I think they thought it would be easy to do,” she said.

In the 2008 elections, Najib’s multiparty, multiethnic National Front coalition had its worst showing in five decades of unbroken rule as urban Malays as well as Chinese and Indian minorities supported opposition parties pledging policies that don’t discriminate in favor of the Malay-Muslim majority.

Harassment of Ambiga since the April demonstration has included traders setting up outside her home and serving free beef burgers and Malay army veterans stretching and shaking their buttocks near her house. Ruling party lawmaker Mohamad Aziz withdrew his June 26 comment about Ambiga’s possible treason - a crime which carries the death penalty - two days later following complaints from the ruling coalition’s ethnic Indian party leaders.

Electoral Impact

“Her rather calm and methodical responses to many of the different challenges and the personal attacks,” have given a sense of pride to the Indian Malaysian community, according to Bridget Welsh, Associate Professor of Political Science at the Singapore Management University. “By allowing the people who attacked her to go without prosecution or condemnation -- this has actually had an electoral impact.”

Indians account for about 7 percent of Malaysia’s population of 29 million. Najib’s approval ratings dropped to 69 percent in June from 72 percent in May among the ethnic Indian community, possibly due to dissatisfaction over statements toward Ambiga, according to a Merdeka Center for Opinion Research survey released July 26.

Mohamad Aziz’s comments were personal and didn’t reflect the National Front’s stand, the coalition said June 27. Najib said two days later that statements that hurt the feelings of other races shouldn’t be made.

Overseas Voting

Besides the use of indelible ink, the next election will allow Malaysians living overseas to vote as part of “unprecedented measures” to strengthen the electoral process, a government spokesman said. Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said in an interview that Ambiga led “unreasonable” attacks against the government when she was heading the Bar Council. “She seems to have some grudge against the government,” said Mahathir, who resigned in 2003 after 22 years in power. “I think this country has done much better than any other developing country and yet to her it’s wrong, it’s all wrong.”

Ambiga insists she is non-partisan and will not enter politics “so when you say something, it’s not because of politics and not because of which party I belong to, but because it is right, because it’s the law.” Bersih, which last month won a court order overturning the government’s declaration it is an illegal organization, will continue to push for greater transparency in the voting system, saying the changes announced by the government aren’t substantial enough or haven’t yet been implemented.

Positive Change

After receiving death threats including a detailed one by e-mail on June 30, Ambiga now travels with bodyguards, but she doesn’t believe that Malaysia, which saw racial clashes and the suspension of parliament when the ruling party lost support in 1969 elections, will experience political violence.

“If enough people want change, there’s very little anyone can do to stop it,” she said. “Malaysians are generally peace- loving -- we are nowhere near what was happening in the Middle East, Tunisia and Egypt. We are at the right point in time for positive change, and if we are going to bring change, we only want to do it by clean and fair elections.”

The lawyer intends to step down from Bersih after Malaysia’s next election to focus on her work at her firm specializing in commercial, intellectual property and industrial law. Personal interests like cricket and the arts have also been set aside, she said.

Stage, Courts

“My claim to fame was sharing the stage with Jit Murad about 37 years ago,” she said, referring to the comedian and actor who co-founded Malaysia’s Instant Cafe Theatre Company. Ambiga also has some unfinished work from her previous campaign which first brought her death threats: Women’s rights.

Malaysia has a civil court system inherited from its former British colonial rulers as well as separate Islamic courts governing marriage, inheritance and other family matters for Muslims. “The courts have abdicated their responsibility over a lot of family law issues in these situations involving both the Shariah courts and civil courts,” she said, citing cases where husbands have converted to Islam and unilaterally converted their children too, leaving wives in limbo.

While the government in 2008 proposed legislation requiring individuals wishing to convert to first inform family members and address custody issues, the process stalled at Malaysia’s council of Malay rulers, who have constitutional responsibility for Islamic affairs.

“This should be first in line for resolution,” Ambiga said. “The ordinary Malaysian is beginning to realize that it is not acceptable to play up religion and race in politics. There is a real maturing.”

Related reports:
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/putrajaya-misjudged-right-thinking-malaysians-ambiga-tells-bloomberg/
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/206887
http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/08/22/ambiga-to-leave-bersih-after-ge/

Crime Statistics – Let the truth be told!

Published by Free Malaysia Today on 22 August 2012. FMT LETTER: From Veteran Cop, via e-mail.

...There are several types of crime where the classification can be manipulated from index to non-index. The maneuvering begins at the police district level which receives the report and subsequently transmitted to the State Police Headquarters and Federal Police Headquarters. The crimes which were manipulated are:

• Robbery cases under the Penal Code are classified as index crime. This offence will be classified as non-index under section 382 of the Penal Code. Since, section 382 of the Penal Code is a non-index crime, therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.
• Burglary under section 457 of the Penal Code is an index crime. This offence will be classified as non-index under sections 452 or 453 of the Penal Code. Since, sections 452 and 453 of the Penal Code are non-index crime therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.
• Causing hurt under sections 324 and 326 are index crimes. These offences will be classified under section 148 of the Penal Code. Since, section 148 of the Penal Code is a non-index crime therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.

The under classification of the index crime to non-index crime runs into several thousand cases. Of course, by removing these cases from the crime statistics will reflect that the crime has gone down.

A simple way of ascertaining the extent of cases taken off from the index crime category for the purpose of reducing the crime statistics is by asking the police to provide the statistics of cases classified under sections 148, 382, 452 and 453 of the Penal Code since the implementation of the NKRA to date. Then a comparison should be made with the statistics of cases under the said sections in the last three years preceding the NKRA.

You will discover a sudden hike in the number of cases under those sections after the introduction of the KPI. This figure should then be compared with the figure of the same sections for the three years preceding the NKRA.  The result will confirm that for the period of three years prior to NKRA, cases classified under sections 382, 452 and 453 are almost nil and under section 148 may have only few reported cases. The number of cases recorded under the four sections for the 3 years after the NKRA minus the number of cases recorded for the 3 years before the NKRA will be the figure that has been manipulated.

Other factors that suppress the crime statistics during the NKRA period are:

• There are many cases under the index crime category that are not opened for investigation and were closed with no further action (NFA). These cases involve robberies, snatch thefts and burglaries. Police take no further action for the reason there is no sufficient ground for proceeding with the matter if the suspect cannot be identified, the loss is minimal or there is no lead to proceed further. There are thousands of cases of this nature and since these cases are not opened for investigation, therefore, will not be reflected in the crime statistics. No profiling is done on these cases, but merely swept under the carpet. Without profiling then the trend, pattern, target areas and possible suspects could not be studied to address the recurrence of these incidents.
• There are also cases short-changed in order to achieve the KPI. Say, for example, in a particular day there are 10 cases of burglaries reported in a certain housing area. Only one case will be opened for investigation and the other nine cases will be cross-referred to the one case that was opened. For the 10 cases of burglaries, the statistics should be 10 cases of index crime. Since, there is only one case that was opened for investigation therefore the other nine cases will not be reflected in the index crime statistics.
• Dark figures (crimes not reported) are not factored into the crime statistics. There is a theory that for every 10 cases reported there will be one case not reported. People do not report crime when they have lost faith in the police. Lack of faith may arise when the people have the impression that the police will not treat the report seriously; ineffective investigation due to incompetence; practicing double standards; no confidence the police can solve the case or bring  justice to the victim or can recover the lost items; discriminative investigation based on the person’s background, influence, or status in society; minor trauma or losses treated with scorn; cases can be compromised by suspects getting away through bribery, influence be it political or social standing; exhaustive in going to the police station and lodging report; and last but not least is distrust and suspicion about the police.

Overall, the crime has indeed gone up. There are many flaws in the statistics dished out to the public. The statistics was tailored to justify the KPI and appease the powers that be. It is better for the police to tell the truth and shame the devil. In response to Dr. Lim Teck Ghee, the police said, “Crime statistics released by the PDRM are the actual figures of criminal cases reported to and investigated by the police department. These figures are auto-generated by the department’s computer system i.e. the Police Reporting System (PRS). In this way, no alteration or adjustment to the figures can be done, in order to portray a rosy picture of the crime situation as claimed by certain quarters.”

The rationalization of the computer system (PRS) to validate the crime figures is a flawed excuse. The system picks up only what has been fed into it. PRS system does not control classification of cases. To demonstrate that the GTP, NKRA and KPI are a success, classification of cases was doctored and entered into the system which will surely produce the result that was desired.

The police made another assertion, “All crime data and statistics generated within the PDRM system have been audited and verified by Pricewaterhouse Coopers Malaysia.” Do you expect accountants to audit and verify classification of cases? Are they going through all the police reports to ensure the nature of crime committed, categorizing the correct section of the offence under the law, and classification of the case as index or non-index? Be truthful on their role that is only limited to calculating the figures given by the police. In fact, it is a waste of public funds hiring accountants to just vet the figures if only the police are honest in the first place.

End the charade on public relations (PR) exercises to erase the fear of crime. Stop fooling the public with PR programs, like ‘high profile policing’, ‘high visibility patrol’ ‘walkabout’ ‘stop and talk, ‘meet and greet’, and ‘singing in shopping malls’, that won’t work when criminals are still milling around. Spending huge money hiring consultants with no background or expertise in criminal field to advise the police was the biggest blunder. It is a shame on the police organization of 205 years, having police officers of more than 30 years in service and experience with educational background from degree to PHD, unable to tackle the crime situation...

There must be a climate of fear and respect towards the police. The fear must come from the wrongdoers and those who intend to contravene the law. Respect is from those who feel secured when seeing the men in blue. Are the police doing the right thing to earn that respect? People are feeling unsecured with the crime situation and the fear of being a victim keep increasing. Ironically, even the policemen are having the same sentiment. Camouflaging crime figures will only aggravate the situation further. Be honest and tell the truth.

Read more here: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/08/22/crime-statistics-%E2%80%93-let-the-truth-be-told/

CRIME WATCH: Who has FAILED - Home Minister or Malaysians?

Published by Malaysia Chronicle on 19 August 2012. Written by Crime Buster.

http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=38392:crime-watch-who-has-failed-malaysians-or-hisham?&Itemid=2

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein in his pre-Raya mood celebration message lambasted Malaysians for not cooperating to fight crime.

Malaysians, what is your take on that? Why are you not cooperating? So if you get robbed or get stoned to near death under some dingy car park, or get raped – don’t blame the police lah.

Blame yourself. Understand? The unfortunate happened to you because Malaysians are not cooperating to fight crime, understand!

Umno logic

Holy cow! Any public relations novice studying Mass Communication will tell you that the Home Minister has just made the worst public relations act.

Let us now ask the honorable minister the following questions:

How many houses do not have pad-locked fences, gates, doors, frills?

How many houses do not have five-feet high fencing and walls around their property?

What about the alarms we install in our homes and cars?

How about the thriving CCTV business in Malaysia?

What do you want us to do?

And now you tell us that walking to the car alone is tantamount to non-cooperation? That carrying a handbag in public is non-cooperation? That if a robber breaks into my padlocked house it is because I am not cooperating?

What do you want Malaysians to do? Jump and strangle the daylight out of a would-be robber in a car park? Club a potential robber even before he breaks into a house?

Or do you want the public out on their daily routines to also double-up as security personnel out in the streets, in their Tamans, and at car parks?

So you want us to hide our little hard earned wealth displays of gold and even resort to keeping our little shopping money inside our under garments so that we are seen to be cooperating in not tempting robbers?

So every time a festive holiday comes, a family must run to the police station to inform that they are not going to be in the house?

Try for some common sense, please

Please Mr. Honorable Home Minister, can we have some common sense and responsible leadership around us when it comes to fighting crime?

Malaysians are spending far too much of their hard earned money to ensure that they have grills, padlocks, chains, alarms, CCTVs, dogs and even guards to ensure they can be safe at home.

Malaysians have installed alarms in their vehicles and added on pad-locks and steering locks too.

Today Malaysians do not wear gold and diamonds to work or when driving around. The only pearls, diamonds and gold decking we see being flashed are on the ministers’ spouses.

Please let us have some level headed accountability and honor.

Malaysian economic plans defy global woes

By Jeremy Grant in Singapore. Published by Financial Times on 16 August 2012.

Using the soaring rhetoric of nation-building on a grand scale, Najib Razak, the Malaysian prime minister, recently snipped a ribbon to inaugurate construction of a 28-hectare site in Kuala Lumpur destined to be a new financial centre.

Never mind that the capital already has a thriving business district, home to Bursa Malaysia and dozens of domestic and foreign banks.

The new Tun Razak Exchange – named after Mr Najib’s father, a former Malaysian prime minister – is to be even bigger, representing “the future of Malaysia as the catalyst for economic and financial growth” and positioning the country as “a nucleus of global talent”. Its developer, a state-owned investment agency called 1Malaysia Development is overseeing the $8bn project, set to rise within walking distance of the Petronas Twin Towers.

With much of the world economy experiencing anaemic growth at best, it is hard to believe that any country would contemplate a project on this scale. Yet Malaysia’s economy is enjoying a gravity-defying boom that is confounding sceptics. Second-quarter gross domestic product figures out this week showed the economy grew by 5.4 per cent, way above consensus expectations of 4.6 per cent, and the 4.9 per cent recorded – after an upward revision – for the previous quarter.

That was due to big-ticket government spending, lending to business by well-capitalised banks, and robust consumer demand, fuelled by pay rises for civil servants and cash handouts that have even seen taxi drivers receive vouchers for free replacement tyres...

Malaysia’s healthy economy – and the resulting “feel-good” factor – stands in contrast to growing anxiety among Malaysia’s neighbours in south-east Asia as the global downturn has tarnished their economies. Analysts point out one nagging concern for Malaysia: rising household debt, caused by rapid growth in credit card usage.

Growth could yet be tripped up by domestic politics too. Mr Najib has been playing a cat-and-mouse game with the opposition, led by veteran leader Anwar Ibrahim, over when to call an election, which must occur by April. When that comes, it is expected to be the closest for decades, raising the spectre of political uncertainty for investors...

Read more here: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/cf85972a-e782-11e1-86bf-00144feab49a.html#axzz23mhwTYlr

More British women aborting their children over financial worries, say UK doctors

BY HILARY WHITE, 

ROME CORRESPONDENT.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/more-british-women-aborting-their-children-over-financial-worries-say-uk-do

LONDON, August 14, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A survey by a market research firm has found that the global economic crisis may be influencing more British women to abort their children. The research by Insight Research Group found that about one-fifth of GPs are reporting more women requesting abortion for financial concerns.

Seventeen percent of GPs surveyed felt there was an increase in patients who “were specifically requesting terminations due to financial concerns.” Fifty-four percent of those GPs said they believed the biggest increase was among women ages 26-35. Another twenty-three percent believed the biggest increase was among single women with no previous children, while twenty-one percent said they believed it was among single women living with a “partner” with 1 to 3 previous children.

Thirty-four percent of all the GPs surveyed said that they are seeing women putting off having children “until their financial security improved.”

The findings echo those of Russian demographers who fear that recent gains in the country’s abysmally low fertility rate will be lost as more women turn to abortion to ease financial worries http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/international-life-and-family-roundup1 . 

Although pro-life observers say that they have no argument with the study’s findings, they question the reaction of GPs who endorse abortion for financial reasons.

Anthony Ozimic, the communications manager for the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, said that for authority figures like doctors to affirm with their actions that an abortion is an acceptable solution to financial anxiety sends a profoundly negative message to the culture at large.

“Whatever the merits or otherwise of this study, Western society will continue in its moral and demographic declines as long as the message goes out that women should abort their children or significantly postpone conceiving because of financial concerns,” Ozimic said.

The UK should follow the lead of other EU countries who are offering financial, tax and other incentives to increase the financial security of families and encourage couples to marry earlier and have children, Ozimic said. Instead, the myth is being promulgated that there is such a thing as a “perfect” economic condition in which to have children, when the reality is that such conditions will not exist while the European fertility rate continues to decline.

“While prudence in planning a family is necessary, optimal economic conditions for raising children are illusory.”

Ozimic confirmed that the law does not technically allow for abortions for financial or “social” reasons, but said that doctors have been granted enormous latitude in deciding what factors in a woman’s life constitute a threat to her “mental health”.

This is acknowledged even by the courts to be the case, despite voluminous research demonstrating that abortion has a serious, long-term negative impact on women’s mental health and increasing skepticism http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/new-study-says-pregnancy-is-safe-even-beneficial-for-women-recovering-from/  among the psychiatric community of the existence of any mental health benefits of abortion.