Malawi's religious leaders pressured to support abortion

Under pressure from the international community—much of it based on questionable statistics—some religious leaders in Malawi are backing a bill to allow more abortions in the country.

In July, the Malawian government drafted the Termination of Pregnancy Bill, which is still awaiting the parliament’s approval. The bill seeks to allow abortion in cases of rape, incest, fetal deformity, danger to the mother’s health, or mental or physical health complications. In Malawi, abortion is currently punishable by up to 14 years in jail.

Proponents of the bill cite evidence from the Ministry of Health that says 70,000 women seek backstreet abortions annually and 31,000 of those result in complications, including death. Those numbers have led some religious leaders in the country to switch sides.

“Many women are dying as a result of procuring backstreet abortions,” the Rev. Martin Kalimbe, an Anglican priest, told South Africa’s News24. “Is it wrong for me to support efforts that will save lives of women?”

But data from the Global Burden of Diseases study by the U.S.-based Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation call the numbers to question. According to the study, Malawi faces under 3,000 deaths a year from complications from abortions.

“It’s ludicrous,” said Wendy Wright, vice president of outreach and communications at the Center for Family and Human Rights. “Somebody is either being sloppy or they're just making up numbers.”

Pressure from the external community is also propagating the bill. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has been trying to create partnerships with religious organizations in advocating for its sexual and reproductive health goals. In a February session, UNFPA executive director Babatunde Osotimehin said at least 500 African faith-based groups are working with the organization. But the UNFPA and other pro-abortion groups are only using faith-based outreach to turn religious leaders into advocates in an attempt to gain credibility and spread their ideology, Wright said.

Malawi’s Catholic bishops also accused the government of giving in to pressure from foreign countries and international agencies that make monetary assistance contingent on the removal of anti-abortion and homosexuality laws.

“The government has bowed down to pressure from the donor community,” the bishops wrote in a pastoral letter last month. “It is an act of betrayal on the part of those in power to sell our country to foreign practices and tendencies contrary to the will of God because of money.”

Rather than seeking abortion as a remedy, Wright said Christian leaders ought to create other options for people.

“Christians should provide help and alternatives, not assist or accommodate the killing of unborn children,” she said. “In the U.S., there are four times more pregnancy resource centers than abortion clinics. That needs to happen in other countries.”