‘Doctor, can you save my baby?’. This tragic question was asked by a young mother – just after her baby was aborted in Tygerberg Hospital, Cape Town. She could see her baby breathing and moving his hands and legs. ‘Sorry’, said the doctor, ‘I can’t put your baby back in your womb and he’s too young to live long outside it’. Many mothers choose abortion under pressure – not knowing what it is about – and then regret their choice for the rest of their lives.
As a result of the legalising of abortion on demand in South Africa on 1 February 1997, over 80 unborn children have been killed every day. You can help save mothers’ grief and children’s lives by teaching on and copying this pamphlet to give to others.
YOUR FIRST WEEKS
- Medical science shows that you were a unique person at conception. Your eye colour and eventual height were written in your genes. You developed as a separate person to your mother, with your own heart and blood supply. Here are some of the earliest events that took place in your life:
- By the fourth week your heart was beating and your blood circulating. By 28 days all your major organs, including your heart and brain, began to form.
- At 6 weeks you were 1.5 cm long. Your brainwaves could be measured showing that you were starting to experience. You moved inside the womb and your eye colour was visible.
- Your fingers and toes began to form by the 7th week. Even your nose was visible.
- After 8 weeks, your tiny body was complete and every organ was in place. Palm creases, fingerprints and footprints were already visible. If we tickled your nose, you would move your head away. We could already see whether you were a boy or girl.
- By the tenth week you were almost 4.5 cm. You opened and closed your eyes. Fingernails developed and you started sucking your thumb. If your palm was stroked, you would make a fist.
- By week 11 you were very active. You pushed against the womb wall and bent your knees. You exercised your lungs by breathing the fluid in the womb.
- At three months you were 10 cm long. You had started to look like your parents. You kicked your legs and moved your feet, curling and opening your toes. You turned your head, squinted, frowned and opened your mouth.
- From 14 weeks you could hear sounds outside the womb and would jump if a door slammed.
In South Africa abortion is legal on demand up until 20 weeks and in restricted cases until birth.
WAYS TO KILL UNBORN BABIES
As you read this, remember that unborn babies, like newborns, are sensitive to touch, temperature and pain.
BABIES 12 WEEKS OR YOUNGER:
- Sucking out the womb (suction): A hollow tube connected to a suction machine is forced into the womb. The child struggles, but is pulled apart by a vacuum.
- Cutting into pieces (D&C): A loop shaped knife is inserted into the womb and used to cut the baby into pieces. The pieces are then removed one by one and put together outside the womb to make sure that nothing is left inside.
- Suffocating: An RU486 pill destroys the placenta, cutting off the baby’s oxygen supply and suffocating the child. A second chemical is used to force premature birth.
BABIES OLDER THAN 12 WEEKS (a third of all abortions):
- Babies forced to be born prematurely by a hormone (prostaglandin or Misoprostol). Babies are sometimes born alive, but are suffocated or left to die. To avoid live births, they are sometimes injected with poison (MTX) first.
- Pulling apart (D&E): The opening to the womb is widened and a pair of forceps (like pliers) are used to pull the baby’s arms and legs off. The baby’s head is crushed and the other body parts scraped out.
- Chemical burning (Saline): To prevent live births, a salt or chemical solution is injected into the womb. The baby’s skin is burned off and she swallows the salt, burning her insides. The baby takes one or two hours to die during which time the mother is able to feel the baby kicking violently. Groote Schuur hospital stopped doing this because they found it upsets the mother.
- Caesarean section (Hysterotomy): The baby is almost always born alive, but is suffocated by the abortionist or left to die.
- Sucking brains out (Partial-birth): During birth, when the baby is halfway out of the womb, a hole is made in the back of the head and her brains are sucked out. Legal, but not common in South Africa.
Pro-abortionists try to hide these facts from the public. By educating others, you will help save unborn babies’ lives. Suction and D&E abortions can be seen from inside the womb in the videos ‘The silent scream’ and ‘Eclipse of reason’ by ex-abortionist Dr Bernard Nathanson.
ABORTION AFFECTS THE MOTHER
There are two victims of every abortion – one dies and the other is wounded. Abortions may be legal, but they are not safe. Abortion can damage a woman’s cervix and womb, making it difficult for her to fall pregnant later and increasing the risk of future miscarriages, stillbirths and complications.
After an abortion, a mother may feel relief, but this is often followed by an unexpected grief. Symptoms of Post Abortion Syndrome may appear years later. Symptoms include depression, guilt, regret, eating disorders, alcohol or drug abuse, low self esteem, feelings of helplessness and aloneness, repeated dreams of the aborted child, a sense of loss or emptiness, relationship problems and anger at loved ones.
Like all other sins, God forgives those who admit they were wrong and ask for forgiveness in Jesus name. A woman facing an unplanned pregnancy or suffering from any of these symptoms should contact her nearest Pregnancy Centre for counselling. A woman needs full information and support from caring people to make the right decision for her pregnancy.
UCT Students for Life 