Spuc National President on the Royal Commission

I read your reaction to the Report of the Royal Commission in a recent Salient. You made no real attempt to infrom your fellow students of the Commission's major finding nor did you attempt to refute their main finding that life begins at conception and that the unborn child should receive legal protection from [unclear: implamnation].

It is sad to see the way you and some of the students have been able to close your minds to the great truth that the smallest and most defenceless from of humanity is entitled to protection by law. That the unborn child has the right not to be killed when he or she is innocent of any offence.

The defence of life from all forms of aggression used to be a main preoccupation of students They used to be prepared to fight

They used to be prepared to fight for great principles and against unjust tyrannies such as the extermination of minorities and the enslavement of peoples. That was certainly the position during the two years I was President of the NZUSA. If student newspapers will not spring to the defence of the unbore, where do you now stand on the defence of the handicapped, the aged and the sick?

I would suggest you read or reread the Report. In doing so you should also remember a number of things, about the Commission.

Against the foregoing background, the President of your Association has been foolsih enough to say the Commission 'was stacked against abortion'. Your President is not concerned with the facts nor has she a thought for the integrity of the six members of our Universities. Everyone of them was taught to reason and think, to weigh evidence, to dissect the evidence and to from honest judgements.

Is death the only golution your newspaper can offer the unborn child? If that is so. I hope in later life, in the adversity some of you will face in health or in old age, you do not face the same sort of justice from [unclear: euthai] asia lobby who may show as little interest in your right to life as you appear to show on the right to life for the unborn child.

I was interested to learn that the voting at a recent special SRC meeting held at VUW to discuss the Commission's findings, was just 132-130 in favour of abortion on request. I also understand that a vote to provide WONAAC with financial support of oppose the Commission's findings was rejected by the same meeting. It would appear that your condemnation of the Commission's findings was not supported wholeheartedly by amajority of the students present at your special meeting.

I believe that the majority of students at our Universities do not support your papers view or the official policies of the NZUSA, that this country should have abortion on request. I would be surprised if seven out of ten of them were not opposed to abortion on request up to the 12th week in pregnancy — this is what the Abortion Law reform Association found out when it polled 2400 people in their 1976 NRB Poll.

I also say this because there has never been public support for your position. Recently the pro-abortion lobby spent a conservatively estimated $5000 in advertising a march and meeting in Auckland. The media reported a response of less than 1000. The well publicised demonstration against the Commission's Report at the opening of Parliament drew only 200-300 people.

I would like you to publish this letter in Salient. Or has the freedom of speech (if it is contrary to your view) also been jettisoned by Salient along with the unborn child.