Not all the 500 women who received abortion pills at home last year took them, one pro-life campaigner said in a debate on the controversial topic on Wednesday.

Doctors for Choice reported how almost 500 women received abortion pills at home from a telemedicine service, noting that the data shows “abortion is already in Malta”.

Speaking during a debate at the University of Malta, Life Network Foundation leader Miriam Sciberras said she knew some of the women who bought these pills.

“I know of one woman who bought these pills after she found out she was pregnant while she was taking care of her two-year-old. She was desperate and she called our helpline because she could not afford to put food on the table. We came and supported her. She never took the pills.”

She recounted how a 17-year-old student reached out to the Foundation after she found out she was pregnant and was worried that she could not continue her studies. 

“She also bought abortion pills, but after we supported her, she flushed them down the toilet. She now has a beautiful two-year-old daughter and is studying at University. That 500 is a big number and raised many questions.”

Sciberras was one of the speakers who participated in “Controversy on Quad: Abortion- The Right to Life or Choice?", organised by The Malta University Debating Union and Kunsill Studenti Univeritarji (KSU). The moderator was KSU social policy coordinator Matthias Azzopardi.

Alongside Sciberras on the pro-life camp was Konrad Borg from Doctors from Life, who debated with professor and pro-choice doctor Isabel Stabile and family doctor and member of Doctors for Choice Natalie Psaila.

Replying to Sciberras, Stabile said she was glad to hear that people threw away the pills. 

“People have choices and I’m so glad to hear that these people had the choice to throw away their pills,” she said.

“It’s wonderful really. Our petition has always been that everyone should have a choice, as the moment you remove that choice, you are taking away their human right,” she said to applause from the audience.

Malta maintains the EU’s strictest anti-abortion laws, despite legal amendments passed last year.

The amendments allow doctors to terminate a pregnancy only when a woman’s life is at risk or her health is in “grave jeopardy which may lead to death”.

In the latter case, the termination must be approved by three doctors and the foetus must not be viable outside the womb.

‘Abortion should be decriminalised at all stages”

The two-hour debate was well attended with all seats taken up and some people standing.

It touched on several topics, including when life begins, the question of morality, the need for proper sex education, and safety for the unborn.

Stabile stood firm with her stance that abortion should be decriminalised, in all circumstances and stages. 

“Our position as Doctors for Choice is clear, abortion should be decriminalised, and at all stages of pregnancy, a woman should not be penalised for having an abortion,” she said. 

She also was vocal about the choice of words used in the debate. 

“It’s important to make it clear that 95% of abortions take place at eight or nine weeks in a pregnancy. At that stage it is an embryo, let us use the right terminology.”

To this, Borg said that many biologists and doctors state that life begins at fertilisation. 

“Even pro-choice doctors know that life begins at fertilisation, so how can you say there is not a person in that womb,” he asked, adding that even most pro-choice doctors do not contest that "basic science".

The debate also delved into the question of trauma and regret women experience after having an abortion. 

Borg said that numerous studies concluded that a proportion of women suffered negative psychological consequences after abortion, and said it was important women are given correct information about the intervention.

“We need to be clear about what abortion is," he said. "It is an intervention that involves the intentional killing of an established human life at an earlier stage of development."

Sciberras added that there are double standards when it came to when an embryo is wanted. She said that in the case of IVF procedures, embryos are wanted, but when an embryo is unwanted, then its destiny faces the morning-after pill or an abortion pill. 

“We are an island that believes in equality, and life begins in the womb, and that child needs to be given an equal chance to live.”

On the pro-life stance, Stabile said she never said there were no women who would regret their abortion or do not experience trauma. 

“Abortion involves the killing of human DNA, it does not involve the killing of a human,” she said, adding that she also believes life begins at conception. 

Psaila added that they know no women who woke up one day at 30 weeks of pregnancy and decided to have an abortion.

“In this case, that woman is experiencing a serious problem with her pregnancy and is experiencing a double tragedy. This child is wanted, but for the families and the women, the best medical advice is to stop that pregnancy.”

Improve sex education and provide free contraception

During the closing remarks, Sciberras said that she wants all children, those wanted and unwanted to have their rights protected. 

“I am for choice as long as it doesn’t harm anyone,” she said.

“As soon as my choice impinges on the freedom of someone else, it is not choice but bullying,” she said.

“Our helpline offers a choice - to protect these women and to tell them the truth - that there is a child in their womb who needs to be protected.”

She also commented on the price of abortion pills arguing that the abortion industry was a money-making machine with pills being priced at €100.

Replying to her comments, Stabile said that if a woman reaches out and says she cannot afford the pills, they would be provided either for free or at a discounted price. 

“But really, we need to speak about prevention. We all know that in an ideal world, there are no abortions and unwanted pregnancies, and how can we achieve this? By working more on improving our sex education and providing free contraception,” she said.

“Let us fix these two major problems that cause abortion in Malta, and let us tackle them together,” Stabile said