Bereavement Leave For Miscarriage and Stillbirths
In March this year the Government displayed humanity in a law change that gives parents an entitlement to paid bereavement leave in the case of a miscarriage or a baby being born dead (stillborn). I applaud this display of humanity. It duly recognises that grief experienced in miscarriages and stillborn babies is often equal to that felt in the death of a child. It recognises the dignity of the unborn child as an equal human being. During the select committee process, the committee heard submissions that the law should be extended to those who experience abortion. This was denied. Herein lies the gross hypocrisy. In one case an unborn child is recognised as a human being and the parents given the opportunity to grieve as a legal right. But in the case of abortion, the unborn child is not even recognised as “human tissue.” They are only the product of a ‘medical procedure.’ The mother has a right to ask for them if she wants to give her child the dignity of a burial but in most cases they become either toxic waste or signed over for … that’s another tragic story to be exposed in due time.
Mike Shaw
Mike Shaw 