Parliament considering petition on abortion law changes

‘She is still a child’ – Mum ‘vowing’ to change law around teenage abortion
OneNewsNow 28 August 2015
A mother whose daughter’s school organised an abortion for the teenager without parental consent is petitioning parliament for a law change to prevent it happening again.

Under New Zealand law a child can have an abortion organised by their school and they aren’t required to tell the parents.

This happened to Taranaki mum Hillary Kieft whose 15-year-old girl, Ariana, had a school-organised abortion.

Ms Kieft has travelled to Wellington to lodge a petition to have the law changed.

“Our daughter had to make a life-alerting decision and with a stranger and was expected to keep this as a secret from us. At age 15 she is still a child,” says Ms Kieft.

“If we had known we would have been there. We would have been able to get her the help she needed.

“When I was 16 I had an abortion. Ariana sort of knew my story and I think in a way I failed a little bit by not telling Ariana about my past.

“A lot of girls don’t tell their parents due to shame. I never told my mum due to shame.

“The current law shows we seem to have become a country where life is cheap.”

Ms Keift says she really wants to see the law change and is optimistic it will.

“I believe there will be a change. I don’t doubt it, and if they prove me wrong I will just keep going, it’s the vow I have made”.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/-she-is-still-a-child-mum-vowing-to-change-law-around-teenage-abortion-q07846