National Women's Abortion Conference:

"No woman can call herself free who Joes not own and control her own body. No woman can call herself free until she can choose whether she will or will not become a mother."

Over sixty years after Margaret Sanger, the famous American birth control pioneer, said those words New Zealand women are still denied that right.

The 1975 National election manifesto stated that National's plans for women's rights would go beyond the window dressing of other parties. This "window dressing" under Labour had resulted in the passing of Wall's Hospitals Amendment Bill and the trial of Dr Jim Woolnough. But what has National offered? A promise to make Wall's Bill "water-tight". (Legislation has already been drawn up which will close the Medical Aid Centre). And the possibility of a retrial of Dr Woolnough. Do we yet again have to watch the hypocrisy of male politicians deciding the abortion issue according to their "consciences"?

After some of the largest pro-abortion demonstrations yet seen in this country, and with poll after poll showing an increasing majority of the population favouring a woman's right to choose, the coming Women's Abortion Conference is extremely timely.

Some kind of national strategy is needed to fight back against the attacks being made and to win a positive victory, thus part of the conference will be concerned with proposals for future action. The conference programme also aims to bring out points of debate and discussion between different groups involved in the abortion campaign. This will be the first time there has been such an opportunity on a national scale since the National Women's Abortion Action Conference in 1973, and a lot has happened in those three years.

1 The tentative conference programme is as follows:

Saturday 31st July - 9am-10am Conference registration ($1.00).

Evening: social event with performance from travelling theatre group, focussing on reproductive control.

Sunday 1st August

• Area workshops
• Talk on contraceptive methods, good and bad points.
• Further workshops on strategy
• Plenary session (afternoon)

Delegates from many different women's organisations are being invited, and all women who are opposed to the present restrictive laws are urged to attend this conference.

Subsidised transport to the Conference is being arranged from Wellington. A bus will leave Wellington Railway Station at 7.30pm on Friday, 30th July and return on Sunday evening to arrive in Wellington early on Monday morning. The cost is $11 return.

The Women's Abortion Conference Committee in Wellington is meeting every Wednesday at 8pm, 1 Marion St to organise fundraising activities etc to subsidise transport costs and to publicise the conference. All women are very welcome to come along and help.

For further details please ring: Pat Bartle 858-534 (evgs); Helen Wilson 848-541 (day & evgs) or Claudia Mason 899-797 (evgs).

— Gillian Goodger