Are restrictive laws doing more harm than good? (They violate some freedoms!)

While in high school, there was a common mentality that rules and regulations are put in place to be broken, because there is something about restrictions in the way they tend to push people into doing what they are banned to do. 

Thursday, April 03, 2014

While in high school, there was a common mentality that rules and regulations are put in place to be broken, because there is something about restrictions in the way they tend to push people into doing what they are banned to do. 

I believe that laws are put in place to serve society and limit conflict. But some laws tend to violate some freedoms. 

It is very weird that as a Christian, I zero down my argument on how restrictive laws can cause more harm than good basing it on abortion restrictions in Rwanda. 

Abortion is restricted in Rwanda unless in circumstances of rape, incest or when there is need to save the life of the woman during the first 12 weeks. But even with the above mentioned exceptions comes the requirement to secure a court order before permission can be granted. 

It’s one thing having to deal with the fact that you were raped or having your own family member forcing themselves on you  but it becomes a different issue having to go to court to prove you where raped. The young woman will have to deal with double or triple stigma and related consequences. 

Hence, abortion restriction laws push the victims to seek help from unprofessional and unauthorised personnel because they can’t tolerate the stigma they will encounter while revealing how they were abused. 

The consequence of this is the high number of deaths resulting from the amateurish manner in which it was performed by the quacks that come into the ‘abortion business’ to take advantage of the existing restrictions, yet the restrictive legislation in question is meant to protect life.

During an online debate ‘Should the sale and consumption of alcohol be further restricted or possibly banned?’ one of the respondents argued that: "The legal outlets are not the cause of dangerous patterns of alcohol abuse. It is the illegal outlets that supply at any place at any hour. 

Alcohol abuse starts at home where kids grow up accepting their parents’ behaviour as normal. If kids can be taught to avoid touching a hot stove, they could be taught to steer clear of teenage drinking. 

Expose them to wine from an early age and it will not be funny for them. First time drinkers, at 18 years or thereabouts, usually binge drink to prove to their peers that they are adult enough. Education and training are most important and the eradication of illegal suppliers.”