Campaigners for women’s reproductive rights are gearing up for a day of protest on October 9. A young woman from Cairns and her partner face charges, and a possible jail term, for procuring an abortion under Queensland’s 19th century criminal code.

Alison Thorne reports.

The trial date has been set down for October 12. A National Day of Action (NDA) will be marked by protests around the country demanding that all charges against the couple be dropped.

The NDA is the initiative of three organisations: the Pro-Choice Action Collective in Brisbane, the Women’s Abortion Action Campaign in Sydney and Radical Women in Melbourne.

The Victorian protest will also take place on the second anniversary of the passage of laws, which removed abortion from the Crimes Act. The Right to Life is organising a “March for the Babies” on that date, as part of a campaign to recriminalise abortion.

Debbie Brennan, the Melbourne organiser for Radical Women explains, “We believe a multi-issue approach to the battle for reproductive rights is essential. Choice means that women with disabilities must not be forcibly sterilised; choice means that lesbians and single women must have equal access to assisted reproductive technologies; choice means that all women must have a living wage, childcare, housing and paid maternity leave; choice means access to reproductive health services in remote and regional communities; choice also means not having children removed and parents forced to use a basics card by a racist and paternalistic State. What unites these struggles is that all women need autonomy and the ability to make genuine choices about their reproduction.”

Kathy Newman from the Pro Choice Action Collective says, “We will send the message loud and clear right across the country that we will not stand back while our rights are taken away. This case in Cairns has already had a massive impact on the lives of one young couple — but if the charges are upheld, it has the potential to destroy many more lives as it emboldens the anti-abortion forces. Pro-choice supporters will not let that happen.”