That was my message at the public hearing, which the New Brunswick Population Growth Secretariat held tonight in Moncton. There were about 15 speakers, each with his own ideas how to boost immigration or how to encourage people to stay in the province. I was the only speaker who mentioned abortions on demand and the thousand of lives which they claim in New Brunswick year after year.
Coincidentally, the lady who spoke before me was the manager of a fertility clinic. She complained that their services are not covered by the provincial health insurance, so families that need their help must pay from their own pockets. Unfortunately that can't be said about abortions, as 400 of them (40%) are paid for by the province. My message was - we better fund fertility clinics than abortions.
I asked people to think if they find it reasonable that 1000 New Brunswick babies are aborted each year while many New Brunswick families have to wait years until they can adopt a child or they have to spend thousands to adopt a baby overseas. I suggested that if our provincial government doesn't have the guts to use the non-withstanding clause to kick the Morguentaller's out of Fredericton, the very least they can do is to ensure that every woman who seeks abortion is provided with information about families willing to adopt a child as well as reasonable amount of time to think. That alone would save hundreds of lives and make hundreds of New Brunswick families happier.
Other speakers concentrated on other solutions, such as retention, repatriation and immigration. The latter received so much attention, that I found it necessary to suggest that unemployed, underemployed and returning New Brunswickers should also be entitled to as much help as the immigrants. Another speaker proposed "positive discrimination" to bring in more francophone immigrants, so the existing ratio between English and French-speaking population could be maintained. I reminded the audience that there's no way discrimination could be "positive" and if such quotas are introduced - that will only prevent many skilled professionals from settling in New Brunswick.
Finally I touched the issue of immigrants' credentials. My suggestion was - revamping the provincial nominee immigration program, so immigrants could have their credentials validated as part of their visa processing. Too bad I didn't have the time to mention the personal and small business tax cuts which were rolled back by the government just a few months ago, thus making New Brunswick less attractive to investors. Oh well, whatever I managed to squeeze in my 5-minute speech was good enough as it was.
Not sure if people really liked what I've said but nobody heckled or booed me when I started talking about abortions. A couple of people approached me once the meeting was over, asking me where I'm from and commenting on some of the ideas I suggested. One of them said that my message may fall on death ears if those to hear it don't believe in fetal rights. Maybe so. But I've mentioned the number of abortions performed each year. I've mentioned what it costs the province as well as families who must adopt children overseas. My words were heard. And if they touch at least one heart - that's much better than nothing.
If you'd like to add to what's been said, next public hearings will take place in the following cities:
July 16: Woodstock, Civic Centre, 7 - 9 p.m.
July 17: Edmundston, Amphithéâtre de l'Hôpital Régional d'Edmundston, 7 - 9 p.m.
July 23: Dalhousie, Recreaplex, 7 - 9 p.m.
July 24: Caraquet, l'École des pêches – la salle Hédard–Lanteigne, 7 - 9 p.m.
You can also e-mail your submission to pgs-scd@gnb.ca or you can use the submission form at the Population Growth Secretariat Website.
1 comment:
Most of the people who can be trusted to raise a child want to produce their own.
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