The decision taken by the government to propose that the banning of abortion in Malta is included in the Maltese Constitution is one that should gain the support of one and all.

Abortion is already illegal in Malta and so it should be, and the fact that the government intends to propose its inclusion in the Constitution is a clear signal that there is no intention of ever allowing such a horrible practice to be done, legally, in this country.

The announcement was made last week by Interior and Justice Minister Tonio Borg during a national conference on the wellbeing of the unborn child. Dr Borg could not have chosen a better event than this to put forward this proposal.

Since then, a ministry statement said letters have been sent to a host of non-governmental organisations to sound them out on this idea. The letter includes the proposed changes the government intends to put forward to amend the Constitution.

Favourable comments have already been received from the Curia as well as from the pro-life group Gift of Life. Other organisations are expected to support the proposal too, although there might be some who will bring up arguments in favour of abortion, making particular references to the rights of the mother.

As a newspaper The Malta Independent has always been against abortion. We will maintain our stand on this issue and therefore give support to this initiative. Abortion is the killing of an unborn child, of a human being, and we can never condone such acts, no matter what the circumstances are.

Dr Borg is right to have said that this is not a political proposal and, as such, wants it to be a national effort that rises above political differences. He said that the opposition has been informed about the government’s intentions. It is not known whether the Malta Labour Party has replied to the government.

What is sure is that the government needs the support of the opposition to include the banning of abortion in the Constitution. This is because a two-thirds backing is needed in Parliament to amend it. If an agreement on this matter is reached now and the Constitution is amended, it would take another two-thirds majority of Parliament to reverse this decision.

Let us now hope that the MLP will not take too long in coming up with its answer. It has happened that the MLP has felt that several issues should be kept on the back-burner because there are other priorities – the pensions reform is a case in point. While abortion may not be a pressing issue because, as said earlier, it is already illegal, including the ban in the Constitution will be a sign of Malta’s resolve against abortion.

The fact is that a large majority of Maltese is against abortion. A recent opinion survey showed that 94 per cent believe that life begins at conception and that 86 per cent are against abortion. This is a clear indication as to how the Maltese feel about abortion.

Dr Borg’s announcement came exactly one year after the last controversy that erupted over abortion. This happened just before the European Parliament elections when there were accusations and counter-accusations between the Nationalist Party and Alternattiva Demokratika.

The waters have calmed since then, and abortion was hardly ever mentioned again by politicians until Dr Borg’s announcement last week.

Whether it was deliberately intended to coincide with the first anniversary of one of the most controversial storms in a teacup in Maltese political history is not known.

What is sure is that the government wanted to give yet another sign about its determination to insist in its stand against abortion, and go one step further by including the ban in the Constitution.