The
amendments,
passed
by
parliament
last
week
as
part
of
changes
to
the
Medical
Services
Bill,
include
wide-ranging
revisions
to
existing
abortion
laws.
The
bill
passed
the
National
Assembly
on
October
23
and
is
now
before
the
Senate.
Speaking
on
Tuesday
at
a
children’s
charity
event
in
Bulawayo,
Coltart
urged
senators
to
reject
the
bill
when
it
comes
before
the
upper
house
and
to
allow
further
public
consultation.
“As
a
father,
a
grandfather
and
a
citizen,
I
am
deeply
concerned
about
these
changes
and
the
threat
that
they
pose,”
he
said.
“Not
just
to
the
unborn
child,
but
to
teenage
girls
and
the
fabric
of
our
families.”
Coltart
criticised
the
legislative
process,
saying
the
amendments
had
been
introduced
without
adequate
public
engagement.
“This
bill
has
been
sneaked
into
our
legislation
without
consultation,”
he
said.
“There
has
been
no
meaningful
public
input,
and
I
have
no
doubt
that
if
there
were
consultations,
many
of
these
provisions
would
be
changed.”
He
said
any
changes
to
such
sensitive
laws
should
reflect
what
he
described
as
the
country’s
national
values
and
the
views
of
the
majority.
The
mayor
said
national
priorities
should
focus
on
protecting
and
supporting
children,
particularly
those
born
into
difficult
circumstances,
rather
than
policies
that
could
place
them
at
further
risk.
“As
a
nation,
instead
of
focusing
on
terminating
the
lives
of
children,
we
should
be
asking
what
we
need
to
do
to
ensure
that
children
born
into
hardship
are
protected
and
nurtured,”
he
said,
calling
for
increased
funding
for
orphanages
and
child
welfare
institutions.
Coltart
also
linked
child
welfare
concerns
to
education
funding,
warning
that
cuts
to
support
programmes
were
leaving
vulnerable
children
at
risk
of
dropping
out
of
school.
He
criticised
the
allocation
of
about
US$9
million
to
the
Basic
Education
Assistance
Module
(BEAM)
in
the
latest
national
budget,
describing
it
as
inadequate.
“If
anything
should
be
a
priority,
it
should
be
the
education
of
our
children,
especially
those
whose
parents
cannot
afford
school
fees,”
he
said,
urging
the
government
to
clear
outstanding
BEAM
arrears
and
ensure
no
children
are
excluded
from
school
in
2026.
Post
published
in:
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