Abortion provider accused of failing women in developing countries

Marie Stopes, which yesterday hosted an international conference on the need for more abortion facilities in the developing world, has been accused of failing to meet the real needs of women.

Young women picketed outside the 'Global Safe' Abortion Conference in London yesterday, where speakers included healthcare professionals, pro choice group directors and MPs.

Protesters challenged speakers in their home language and were joined by church leaders from Nigeria claiming that women in their country do not want abortion on demand, despite Marie Stopes' campaign.

Lord Steele, whose 1967 Abortion Act is commemorated this weekend, will also be challenged on how his legacy compares to his father's, who was a great promoter of the value of human life.

Dr Peter Saunders, General Secretary of Christian Medical Fellowship, said ahead of the conference: "The title of this conference may be 'Global Safe' but there's nothing safe about it when you consider the impact it could have on hundreds of thousands of lives who may be aborted as a result.

"Let's be clear, this conference is all about promoting abortion, rather than caring for the real needs of women.

"If it were about women's needs, it should have focussed on the failure of governments around the world to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity. This conference is preoccupied with promoting the ideology and practice of abortion rather than the genuine healthcare needs of women and children.

"The real threat to women's health is the failure to care for women during pregnancy and childbirth and for their babies after birth. The mortality rate of so-called 'unsafe-abortions' has been widely inflated by pro-choice activists.

"With advances in medical care, there were very few women dying from un-safe abortions in Britain at the time the 1967 Abortion Act came into force."

Andrea Minichiello Williams of Christian Concern for our Nation, who took part in the demonstrations, added: "It's heart-breaking to see such blatant advocacy of abortion at a conference that cloaks itself in the language of maternal and newborn health."