In what is shaping up to be an emotional debate, a Victorian government MP will introduce a private member's bill to decriminalise abortion on Wednesday.
Candy Broad, an MP in the Upper House, said that the current law on abortion was out of sync with the current attitude of the community. She went further saying that her decision to bring the bill forward was made on behalf of the Association for the Legal to Abortion, who had been lobbying for abortion to be decriminalise.
Ms. Broad indication that she will introduce the bill has met with resistance from within the Labor Party and others.
A spokeswoman for the Victorian Premier said that he supported the existing system of allowing abortions under some circumstances. The only change the Premier is contemplating is shifting existing rules governing abortion to the Health Act which is not achieved by Ms. Broad's bill.
Right to Life Australia's president, Margaret Tighe has condemned the bill calling it, 'the most infamous piece of legislation to have ever appeared in the Victorian Parliament.'
She stated her firm opposition to the killing of a certain class of human beings, saying it is a gross abuse of human rights. If the legislation was passed, she continued, than wild ducks in the State will have more protection than an unborn child.
"Any legislation that says that a certain class of human beings can be killed is a gross abuse of human rights," Ms. Tighe said. "If this legislation is passed, wild ducks in Victoria will have more protection than unborn children."
The State National leader, Peter Ryan has also expressed his opposition saying that once the prospect of the conduct of abortions is opened up entirely then the logic of a reduction of the number of abortions will be 'fallacious' logic.
"Once you open the prospect entirely of the conduct of abortions … then I just think it is fallacious logic to think that we are not going to see an increase in an already significant rate of abortion within Victoria," said Mr. Ryan.
AAP reported that the State Opposition leader, Ted Baillieu has expressed tentative support for the bill but is waiting to see more detail.