Several members of the public have shared their views over a recent call by members of the civil society to have abortion decriminalised and lessen the penalties handed to a woman caught in acts of abortion, . Agatha Mutamba, a midwife at Kanombe Military Hospital, said that abortion should only be accepted when it’s been medically recommended. “Abortion is a thin line between life and death. It’s very risky even if carried out by professional doctors. Punishments are therefore necessary for people who deliberately abort with no medical reason,” Mutamba said.
Several members of the public have shared their views over a recent call by members of the civil society to have abortion decriminalised and lessen the penalties handed to a woman caught in acts of abortion, .
Agatha Mutamba, a midwife at Kanombe Military Hospital, said that abortion should only be accepted when it’s been medically recommended.
"Abortion is a thin line between life and death. It’s very risky even if carried out by professional doctors. Punishments are therefore necessary for people who deliberately abort with no medical reason,” Mutamba said.
She added that the punishments encourage people to be careful and avoid unwanted pregnancies.
Pamela Mbabazi, a businesswoman in Kabeza, says abortion should indeed be legalised to avoid unnecessary deaths.
"Women die and get complications while aborting. This is because it’s illegal so they seek help from unqualified people who in most cases don’t know what they are doing,” Mbabazi says.
She adds that lessening the punishment is not enough. She suggests that abortion instead be legalised because if not, people will still carry it out.
Mbabazi emphasises that its unacceptable for women to continue to die in their attempts to terminate unwanted pregnancies yet there are qualified health professionals who can do it safely.
A senior pastor at Healing Centre Remera, Emmanuel Ntayomba, says abortion is illegal and should not be decriminalised.
"Abortion is the same as murder which is sin in God’s eyes. Abortion is therefore a crime and even if the world decriminalises it, God will punish whoever commits it according to Genesis 9:5-6,” Ntayomba says.
He adds that criminalising abortion will scare people from aborting since they will be terrified by the penalties.
However, the headmaster of King David Academy, Brian Kasawuli, said that abortion should only be permitted when the victim’s life is in danger.
"If medical reports indicate that the woman involved will lose their lives or get serious complications when they give birth, then abortion should be allowed,”Kasawuli says.
Kasawuli, however added, that punishments should be lessened for just a few individuals who are victims of circumstances such as girls that have been raped.
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