That churches are opposed to the new constitution because of the controversial abortion clause is pure hogwash. The last time I checked, Kenya is a secular state and stealth efforts by Christians to make it otherwise will be opposed to the last man standing.
I almost forget, today is the International Women Day, lemme take this opportunity to wish all women a great day and a great year. They should use this day to take stock of the achievements they have made so far and what still remains to be done in the fight for dignity, liberty and the right to steer their own destiny. I am sure the right to safe abortion is at the centre of this march.
Oh, this reminds me, why are the voices I hear about abortion those of men and not women?
Abortion is about women. Men’s role ends the night of conception and in some cases; they join the woman in bringing up the offspring. A role they sometimes abdicate without any scruples. Those crying loud about abortion are such men.
So what is my opinion on abortion?
Abortion is not murder. It is a health procedure. Just like an operation to remove cancerous cells or dieting to cut weight.
Life starts at the time when a baby can survive on its own without the direct support of the mother. By that, I mean when all its vital organs are functional.
A fetus is just but a mass of cells. I am not a doctor hence I don’t know after how many weeks a baby can survive on its own outside of a mother’s womb. It is for doctors to decide and I am sure they have the capacity to do it.
In Spain, abortion is permissible up to 22 weeks. I don’t know what rational they used to arrive at this time frame. Their laws state that a mother can procure abortion when her physical and mental (psychological) wellbeing is under threat. The mental aspect was obviously included to take care of the economic and social consequences of a woman carrying the pregnancy to full term. I believe this is the best law for women anywhere in the world. This law has been in effect since 1985 and Spaniards still bring forth many offspring including the one you will be watching in the 2010 World Cup. This law has never made the Spanish race extinct. It has only made their lives better. Why doesn’t Kenya borrow a leaf from them?
Pregnancy takes place in a woman’s body and is therefore solely responsible for its continued existence or otherwise, depending on what they feel about it. No second party can interfere in this natural situation without infringing on the fundamental rights of the mother. I believe this unique situation gives them inaliable right to determine whether to carry the baby or not.
Again, I believe the fetus is part of a woman’s body up until the birth of the baby. If anything happens to the fetus, it has direct consequences on the life of the mother. It is only a woman who knows how the fetus or baby will affect her life and thus pregnancy is the sole discretion of a woman involved.
I will never be shaken from this conviction. This is a biological issue, not legal, political, social or otherwise. Those whose beliefs are in the contrary should critically re-examine their thoughts.
Life begins at birth. Period. If it was not so, a fetus should have been able to develop independently of the mother. The one that a man and woman have equal say over it is a test-tube baby.
Back to the abortion debate vis a vis the Kenyan church. The church in Kenya is a hypocritical lot. When Kenya was burning during the Post Election Violence, the church went silent. Its members retreated to their tribal enclaves and waged war against other tribes. They don’t have the moral authority to guide this nation because they are partisan. The vested interests they have in the politics of this country have made them irredeemably parochial. They cannot be relied to give an independent, sober and rational moral guidance to this nation. We are better off with our secular minds.
(I am guilty of a fallacy of argumentum ad hominem but this is the only way I can illustrate that the church in Kenya is not infallible.)
In any case, they should be waging their wars from the pulpits not press conferences. This is not the Vatican. The state here is clearly separate from religion. Those who are dissatisfied with this arrangement should kindly relocate. I am particularly bitter because the Church puts itself in a high pedestal it cannot itself live up to it. For instance, they are opposed to condom use yet AIDS is ravaging their flock equally as non-Christians. Family planning is another case. Now abortion, it is time the church wake up from their blinding faith. Hey guys, reality is beckoning!
The church should preach morality to its flock not the world. Their influence on the morality of this nation should be through preaching the teachings of the bible and not by arm-twisting our laws. They should detest from this business of blackmail. If their teachings were effective we would be having no unwanted pregnancies to start with. Time to stop fighting the symptoms and go for the cancer. They should carry a serious introspection and map out a strategy of winning back their flocks to the ways of Christianity.
They are fighting a lost war because they are fighting it from the wrong front. So many abortions happen in this country every hour yet it is illegal. It does not mean if it is legalized it will escalate. It will only make it safe for the mothers. What is the point of losing two lives when we can save at least one?
It is not a secret. Most aborted fetuses include those of randy church ministers, priests and pastors. You just have to throw a passing glance at the abortions in your neighborhood to confirm this. Even their daughters and wives are not spared. Worse still, they abet abortion when it is their family members or close relatives. These bastards know what abortions are for. Lousy charlatans!
Divorce the abortion debate from religion. Then and only then will we have a productive debate that take care of the real stakeholders: women!
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