Canada
Chief Justice Robert Bauman of the British Columbia Supreme Court upheld Canada’s ban on polygamy on Nov. 23. The case came before the B.C. Supreme Court after charges against two men from a Mormon sect in Bountiful were stayed. “Based on the most comprehensive judicial record on the subject ever produced, I have concluded that (there is) a reasoned apprehension of harm to many in our society inherent in the practice of polygamy,” said Justice Bauman, including “harm to women, to children, to society and to the institution of monogamous marriage” Institute of Marriage and Family Canada (IMFC) executive director David Quist said, ““Oftentimes we are led to believe that our relationships are only private matters. This ruling shows this is not the case, given the radically different outcomes associated with polygamous marriage as compared with other family forms, outcomes which affect the way we live.” … The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC) released a report that describes human trafficking in Canada and gives recommendations for changes to current laws to combat the problem. “It is vital to ensure that every step be taken so that trafficking in persons is stopped across and within our borders. That includes the necessary reformation of our prostitution laws,” said Don Hutchinson, vice president and general legal counsel at the EFC in a press release … The government of British Columbia introduced changes to the Family Law Act that will impact the process of divorce by ensuring decisions are made in the “best interest of the child” and encouraging less confrontational divorce proceedings. “While the act is a step in the right direction…what if we could reduce the number of people that actually need to open the pages of this act by reducing family breakdown where it starts?” IMFC’s David Quist wrote in the Vancouver Sun … The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission gave the 990 AM frequency in the Montreal area to Dufferin Communications Inc., which plans to use the signal to set up Radio Fierté, a music and talk station in French catering to homosexuals. The parent company of Dufferin, Evanov Communications Inc., also operates Proud FM in Toronto … Alberta Judge John Bascom ruled that the University of Calgary infringed William Whatcott’s freedom of expression when it charged him with trespassing over three years ago for giving out anti-gay pamphlets. “I see this as an important victory for social conservatives and Christians who want to express themselves,” said Whatcott.
United States
House Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told the Washington Post that she stood by her statements in October against the Protect Life Act, which would protect conscience rights and stop abortion funding through Obamacare. Claiming she is a “devout Catholic,” she criticized Catholics for having “this conscience thing” against supporting abortions … Pro-life senators blocked an appropriations bill containing seven pro-abortion provisions from moving forward in the Senate. The bill would have given $40 million to the UN Population Fund, made it impossible to reinstate the Mexico City policy, and lifted the ban on public funding of abortion in the District of Columbia …
E-mails exchanged between U.S. Department of Justice official Larry Tribe and Justice Elena Kagan, who was Solicitor General at the time, confirm that the executive order signed by President Barack Obama to get Rep. Bart Stupak and other pro-life Democrats to vote for Obamacare in 2010 did not actually guarantee a ban on abortion funding just as pro-life groups such as the National Right to Life Committee and Americans United for Life contended at the time. Tribe, commenting on the “remarkable” passage of the bill, wrote, “And with the Stupak group accepting the magic of what amounts to a signing statement on steroids!” … Tina Baldwin, the sixth employee to plead guilty from the Philadelphia “House of Horrors” abortion facility run by abortionist Kermit Gosnell, admitted to charges of participation in a corrupt organization, conspiracy, and corruption of a minor. The receptionist, along with her 15-year-old daughter, were involved in assisting with abortions, anaesthetizing patients, performing ultrasounds, and helping in the recovery room despite their lack of medical certification.
International
The staff of the Royal Women’s Hospital in Australia accidentally aborted a healthy twin after the mother decided to abort the other 32-week old twin when she was told at that the child would have a serious cogenital heart defect. The remaining, sick child was delivered by c-section and left to die when staff found out about the error … During his visit to Africa, Pope Benedict XVI presented a new document, Africae Munus, which strongly endorses the protection of life and the sanctity of the family. At his address in Benin, the Pope highlighted the ethical dimensions of the AIDS crisis in Africa: “if it is to be effective, the prevention of AIDS must be based on a sex education that is itself grounded in an anthropology anchored in the natural law and enlightened by the word of God and the Church’s teaching.”