21 New Zealanders who would have been harmed by the 'Safe Areas' Bill

These 21 different testimonies (names withheld to respect privacy) come directly from people who have received care, support or just empowerment to make different choices by being able to see or interact with the pro-lifers who peacefully gather outside the abortion facility in the Hawkes Bay each week.

The so-called ‘Safe Areas’ Bill is attempting to make this sort of peaceful and caring activity a criminal offence in New Zealand, meaning that these 21 people would have been harmed and denied their right to choose alternatives to abortion.

1. *J from Wairoa saw our six week old foetus sign and ran out of the abortion clinic. *J approached one of the Pro-Life Hawkes Bay (PLHB) volunteers, and pointing at the six week foetus sign said: "your sign saved my baby’s life". She said she had a few children already and felt she couldn't cope with another child and so she came on the hospital transport van/bus from Wairoa and saw the six week foetus sign as she drove into the hospital to go for her abortion. She said she couldn't get the image of the six week foetus out of her mind and in her own words said "I did a runner before my name was called”. *J had then thought of her aunty who couldn't have children and arranged to have her aunty adopt the child.

2. *R from a Hastings Girls High School shared that her friend had kept her baby because of talking with our outreach group at Hawke’s Bay Hospital.

3. A Grandmother told us of her saved grandchild when her daughter drove straight out of the clinic because of our signs.

4. *S saw our ‘Save My Life’ sign and chose to keep her baby - a son.

5. A young couple drove in and out of Hawke’s Bay Hospital because of our signs. 

6. A young woman spoke to one of PLHB’s volunteers, at the Hawke’s Bay Hospital outreach. She was five weeks pregnant at 17 years old and was considering an abortion. She was “50/50” but chatted with us and after seeing the prenatal development pictures and the small baby models she was then quite sure that she would keep her baby. We later heard confirmation that she did indeed choose life for her baby.

7. Our outreach team met a young woman at the local markets with a three week old baby girl who had the Maori name for ‘morning peace’. It turns out it was a woman we had previously met who had been booked into the abortion clinic at Hawke’s Bay Hospital. She had spoken to a member of our team and taken one of our information packs with a 12 week foetus model and a pro-life poem. We caught up with her again at a later stage and she shared how the poem and baby model really spoke to her, saying how she realised that abortion is "killing”, and so she didn’t go into the clinic for the abortion appointment.

8. A woman stopped and shared with one of our team at the outreach that her grandchild is alive today because of our signs. Her daughter was considering abortion and being pressured by her partner but changed her mind when she saw our signs as she was going to the kindergarten across the road.

9. One of our team members approach two young women who were reading a foetal development poster we had next to our info table. They shared that their friend was going for an abortion that day but couldn’t go ahead after seeing our signs - they had been with the young woman at the time she changed her mind.

10. We met *J who has a baby now that she had considered aborting. She came to the abortion clinic at the time, but said our signs made her think. She also heard her baby’s heartbeat during the appointment. The abortion clinic staff asked her if she wanted to take “it” home, at which point she changed her mind.

11. *J, the father of a little girl, shared how he and his girlfriend had come to the abortion clinic many months early and he said that they talked about our signs in the car and didn’t go ahead with the abortion. He said our signs had a major impact on them keeping their baby.

12. *K, a nurse, talked to her friend who was going to abort, and gave her one of our pregnancy info packs. A few days later we heard she was keeping her baby. The same nurse gave another one of our info packs to another girl who was considering abortion - she also decided to keep her baby.

13. A Dad stopped to talk to us after seeing “Mum Saved Me” sign which really touched him as his daughter was considering abortion. He really didn’t want her to abort but didn’t know what to do - he had given up as he felt helpless but when he saw our sign thought maybe we could advise him what to say, etc. We had a good conversation and he took away heaps of information and a pregnancy help pack with a ‘tiny feet’ necklace inside. A few weeks later we heard from the young girl’s sisters that the baby was being kept. The sister said that the girl had worn the gold ‘tiny feet’ necklace which helped her bond with her baby.

14. While outside the Hawke's Bay Hospital two women with young babies approached us and said "thank you for this, we saved our babies lives because of your signs”. One of the women said her mother was also a positive influence for her to choose life. It is very encouraging to know that the simple act of standing with a sign and giving out information each week is making a difference for mothers and their children.

15. A man pulled over in his car to share that his partner had visited the abortion clinic about one year earlier, but upon seeing our pro-life signs she knew she couldn’t abort their child. At that time the couple had a beautiful six month old girl. 

16. While we were outside the Hawke's Bay Hospital a young woman and her sister-in-law approached our information table and showed a great interest in our small baby models. From her reaction etc, one of our team members suspected that she was pregnant herself and carefully asked her if she was. She replied yes and said "but I have to get rid of mine" as apparently doctors had told her she should abort due to likely complications including losing her own life if the pregnancy went ahead. In her own mind she wanted her baby but thought she had to abort it. She was therefore waiting to hear back from the abortion clinic regarding her pre abortion scan. Our team started asking a few questions and suggested to her that our group could pay for a consultation with a specialist obstetrician to gain a more qualified opinion. A retired nurse on our team went with her to the appointment the following week and was with her when she received the news that she could continue with the pregnancy and would be carefully monitored throughout but the chances of severe complications were slim. Great outcome and one very relieved lady.

17. While at our pro-life information and pregnancy support stall outside the Hawke's Bay Hospital in Hastings we were delighted when a young man approached us and shared a video of a beautiful happy girl playing. He then shared that this was his daughter and how she had been scheduled to be aborted a couple of years ago. He said that when his partner drove to the hospital for the doctors to abort their daughter, she saw our pro-life signs and reconsidered, coming to the conclusion that she couldn't go through with it. The Dad shared that all her family are also thankful as she is a joy to them all and such a bright happy little girl.

18. *S shared how her daughter kept her baby due to what she learnt from us a few years ago, she was otherwise considering abortion.

19. A man shared a video of a baby saved from abortion with one of our team members. His partner had seen our signs, and came out of abortion clinic, and kept her baby.

20. *J, a young pregnant woman, visited our pro-life outreach outside of the public hospital in Hastings. She was living with her dad who was pressuring her to either abort her child or move out of his house, and the father of the child had just been deported to India. We offered her support and gave information but didn’t hear from her until a year on when she visited again at the pro-life outreach with her infant child. She shared how she had ended up in the abortion clinic shortly after she met us for the first time but didn’t go through with having her unborn child aborted. She said how glad she was that she met us as that meeting and our information had helped her to choose life for her child. She wore the gold ‘tiny feet’ necklace around that time which helped her think of her unborn child.

21. A man approached our pro-life outreach team at the Hawke’s Bay Hospital. He showed our team a photo of a woman with two young girls, then he said "see that girl on the left, that's my daughter, she turns seven next week. My partner was going to have her aborted seven years ago but she drove past you guys and decided against it. I get a shiver whenever I drive past you now. And by the way, she is a bloody good mother."