FEBRUARY 15, 2023
Right to Life vigorously challenges the unprecedented attempt by the Ministry of Health to regulate the language we use in relation to abortion. We make no apology for recognising that the unborn child is a human being and that abortion is the violent killing of a child, the weakest and most defenceless member of the human family.
Right to Life is opposed to censorship and the suppression of free speech, which is a fundamental human right in a democratic society.
Right to Life lodged the following Official Information request with the following question to the Ministry of Health on 26th January 2023.
“The names of the pharmacists who have indicated to your Ministry that they are prepared to dispense mifepristone and misoprostol for the purpose of killing an unborn child in a medical abortion”
The Ministry have rejected our request for the list of pharmacists. If the requested list had been provided, it was the intention of Right to Life to write to those pharmacists and respectfully submit that if they were prepared to dispense lethal drugs to kill an unborn child they would be violating their conscience and pharmaceutical ethics.
The Ministry responded on 13th February 2023. “The language and tone of your request lead us to question whether your request had been made in good faith. The wording “killing an unborn child” adds no value or context to the information being requested, however, indicates hostility towards pharmacists who dispense mifepristone and misoprostol for the purpose of medical abortion.
Right to Life challenges the Ministry's assertions. We make no apologies to the Ministry for reminding them that they are presiding over the abortion industry in New Zealand. We will never change our tone and language to pretend that poisoning and sucking the unborn out of her mother’s womb or violently dismembering her is health care. Our requests are neither frivolous or vexatious.
We bear no hostility to pharmacists but simply must point out that dispensing lethal drugs to kill unborn children violates the ethics of their profession and, like all abortion providers makes them complicit in expanding the culture of death.
The government and the Ministry appear to be determined to suppress those who are a voice for the voiceless and who refuse to accept the killing of our unborn children as “a reproductive health choice”
The Ministry, now named Manatu Hauora, warned us that it stands by their response and for future requests, we invite you to consider submitting requests in more appropriate terms. If you choose not to, we will consider whether it is necessary to refuse your request as frivolous or vexatious under section 18(h) of the Act.
Right to Life will now lodge a complaint with the Ombudsman to uphold our right to continue to seek information from the Ministry of Health, under the Official Information Act.
Ken Orr,
Spokesperson,
Right to Life New Zealand Inc