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The
Party Positions and Responses
Campaign
Life Coalition of British Columbia has been facing an uphill battle
to obtain crucial information on candidates' positions on abortion.
If you do not see a candidate's name mentioned, then they have
not responded in any way to our questionnaire.
Increasingly,
candidates have opted to hide behind responses formulated by party
central offices. For your information we have attempted to summarize
the party positions.
New
Democratic Party
The governing NDP has made British Columbia a hostile place for
unborn babies and those who advocate in their defence. Premier Dosanjh's
NDP has promised to increase funding for abortions, while introducing
measures to further suppress freedom of information, freedom of
speech, and freedom of conscience regarding abortion. For more on
the NDP and abortion, please see CLCBC's
home page.
BC
Liberal Party
Gordon Campbell, leader of the BC Liberal party, has promised to
maintain the status quo of abortion on demand in British Columbia.
He has forbidden Liberal candidates from responding to CLCBC's questionnaire,
and has instead released the following letter on behalf of all Liberal
candidates. CLCBC has persevered in its attempts to identify candidates
with pro-life voting or public records.
BC Liberal Party Official Response:
April 26,2001
Campaign Life Coalition BC
Fax: (604) 532-9353
Dear Campaign Life Coalition BC:
Thank you for sending the BC Liberals your questionnaire.
As stated in our New Era for British Columbia platform, a BC Liberal
Government will protect current funding and existing levels of abortion
services throughout the province, as a matter of confidence in government.
Once again, thank you for sending me your concerns.
Sincerely, [original signed]
Gordon Campbell, Leader
BC Liberal Party
Unity
Party
The BC Unity Party, led by Chris Delaney, was formed by members
of several parties including the pro-life Family Coalition Party
of BC. The party constitution has a preamble upholding " the right
to life which must be respected and preserved at all stages."
While the Unity Party platform certainly has many positive pro-life
elements, not all candidates for the Unity Party are in fact pro-life.
Please check for your candidates individual response.
According to its Party Policy, a BC Unity government will:
- Repeal
'bubble zones' which restrict peaceful protest.
- Enact Freedom
of conscience legislation to protect the rights of doctors,
nurses, researchers, pharmacists, teachers, police, social workers
and members of any profession who stand to lose their right
to work if they refuse to participate in activities which they
consider to be against their conscience.
- Restore
parent's rights to decide which medical or counselling procedures
their minor children may undergo.
- Prohibit
teachers or school counsellors from making referrals to agents
promoting or providing abortions, the Infant's Act notwithstanding.
The Unity Party
health platform advocates the elimination of public funding for
non-essential surgery and services. Abortion is not mentioned specifically
under this section.
Referenda
On matters of major concern to society, the Unity Party platform
is that "the people must have the final say through referenda."
Campaign Life Coalition does not endorse the notion of popular
referenda to determine issues of fundamental rights, of which the
right to life is paramount.
The right to life of each human being is inalienable, and cannot
be denied because of a majority vote.
In the event of a referendum on abortion, however, Campaign Life
Coalition will fight hard for the right to life.
Green Party
The BC Green Party is led by Adriane Carr. The party's Children
and Families advocate Tom Hetherington submitted a pro-abortion
response on behalf of the party. Support for abortion on demand
is entrenched in the party platform.
While the BC Green party proposes to abolish the use of court injunctions
against "people participating in acts of peaceful disobedience"
their support for the odious "bubble-zone" legislation indicates
that the BC Green Party does not consider pro-lifers' freedoms to
be equal to those of environmental activists. |
