With Government’s recent publication of a Draft Constitution and the wording of one of its clauses (5,2) that relates to respect for life, the pro-abortion lobby has raised objections, reviving questions concerning the beginning of human life. In response, the Emmanuel Community, which has been in the forefront of educating the public on the Church’s stance on life issues, made the statement which follows:

Emmanuel Community, a defender of human life from conception to natural death, welcomes the inclusion among the “Enshrined Rights” proposed in the Draft Constitution of the clause which reads:
“Everyone has the right to have his life respected and this right shall be protected by law and, in general, from the moment of conception.” (5.2)

This proposal for inclusion in the Revised Constitution expands upon the declarations in the existing Constitution which enshrine the right of the individual to life, liberty, security of the person, enjoyment of property, and the right not to be deprived thereof except by due process of law.

The question arises why is this elaboration of the protection of the right to life deemed to be necessary. We have no way of knowing what was in the minds of the framers of the Draft Constitution.  

However it seems to us fair to surmise that it was deemed to be necessary in order to remove any ambiguity (perceived or real) regarding the issue of when the life of every human being begins.

In this connection, we have noted, in current discussions on whether or not there should be a change in the laws of Trinidad and Tobago to legitimise procuring and/or performing abortions, the pro-abortion lobby has sought to revive the question of when the child becomes a human person. Historically, theories (and myths) have been propagated on this question.

However, in modern times, science – in the study of the human embryo (human embryology) – has now demonstrated that the human individual possesses his own identity from the moment of fertilisation (conception) (Note 1). Therefore it is logical to hold that this identity be legally recognised, above all in the fundamental right to life.

The Church, from the beginning, has always condemned abortion and held that, at any stage of human development in the womb, abortion is a serious sin against God the Creator of all human life.

For these reasons, Emmanuel Community advocates that the support of Catholics for the inclusion of the proposed clause in the Revised Constitution is necessary.

Note 1: cf Dianne N Irving, MA, PhD in International Journal of Sociology and  Social Policy 1999, quoting from William J Larson, Human Embryology (New York: Churchill Livingstone,1997)