Morgentaler decision reaches 25th anniversary

Canada remains only Western country without law that restricts abortion

The annual March for Life in Ottawa is one way pro-lifers protest against the 1988 Supreme Court case. (Deborah Gyapong / CCN)

R. v. Morgentaler, a decision by the Supreme Court that struck down all existing laws regulating abortion, was handed down Jan. 28, 1988. Deborah Gyapong reports from Ottawa:

Since that Supreme Court decision, Canada has been the only country in the Western world that has no laws restricting the killing of children before the moment of complete birth, leading to the abortion of more than 100,000 children a year.

Justice Bertha Wilson, who wrote the majority decision, left it to Parliament to consult all relevant disciplines, then determine the point in an unborn child's development when it should be protected.

Unfortunately, that has not happened.

"The courts never took the extremist position advanced by some people today that rights of a mother mean we must pretend a child is not a human being before birth," said Conservative MP Stephen Woodworth.

Read the full article here.