Should Abortion Be Allowed on Demand?

Should abortion be allowed on demand?
Abortion is when the pregnancy is intentionally terminated to stop a natural child birth. In 1967 the Abortion Act was passed in the UK. It states that an abortion may only be carried out if the woman is under 24 weeks pregnant and has one of the following complications: If the pregnancy was continued it would risk the mother’s life more than f it was ended, the termination is necessary to avoid severe permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman, If the pregnancy went on it would involve more risk to the pregnant woman or her family’s mental or physical health. There is proof that the child, if born, would be seriously handicapped. Or if born, the woman would require lifesaving care, or care to stop permanent mental or physical injury. Abortion is a highly sensitive and controversial topic, and many views and opinions are explored.
Members of the major world religions oppose abortion. For example Roman Catholics, who strongly oppose the use of abortion, and think it is a moral evil. They liken abortions to killing an innocent and go by the 6th of the Ten Commandments “thou shalt not kill”. Although in the past the Pope has said that having an abortion before you feel the foetus move is only killing a potential human, but killing a baby afterwards is a sin. Other Christian denominations also oppose abortion, as suggested by the bible “If men who are fighting hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman’s husband demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot" (Ex. 21:22–24). This could be compared with abortion, showing an opposed view.
Other members of the major world religions also oppose include Judaism, Jews do not forbid the act of abortion but they do not support abortion on demand. Abortion should be kept for very serious cases only. If the pregnancy would seriously harm the woman’s health then they insist on abortion, as the mother’s life is of more importance than the child’s, but the abortion is preferred to take place within the first 40 days, as there is no soul in the foetus until the 40th day; "the embryo is considered to be mere water until the fortieth day.". An interpreter of Jewish law stated: "A descendent of Noah who kills any human being, even a foetus in its mother's womb, is to be put to death." They believe that abortion would go against God’s will of making a child, and kill something made in the image of God. The baby is not valued as a real human until its head comes out of the woman’s body.
Other anti-abortion views within the world religions include Hinduism. They believe that producing children is a duty not a choice, and abortion is breaching that duty. Hindu texts take radical actions against abortion, and compare it to killing a priest: "Killing a Kshatriya [knight] or a Vaishya [Merchant] engaged in sacrifice, a menstruating woman, a pregnant woman... [And]..The embryo (even) of a stranger is tantamount to killing a Brahmin [Priest]." (Hindu Ethics, p.45). They also believe in Ahimsa, the act of non-violence, and killing an unborn baby is breaking the rule of Ahimsa and Rita (the general law of justice) .Hindus use holy texts to defend their views. "Whpe off, O Pushan [Lord], the sins of him that practiseth abortion." (Sacred Books of the East, 42:165) However the modern rule of Hinduism is to go by whatever course of action would cause the least harm, to mother or baby, and if the mother’s life is in danger, then abortion is justified.
Other world groups who argue against abortion (such as pro-life groups) would debate that abortion is murder of an innocent. They believe that human life begins at conception, and a human should not be killed. They believe that the foetus is a unique person with a unique genetic code, and therefore shouldn’t be killed. The foetus should be regarded as a human like ourselves, in their minds, and they could have a future, and we should not destroy that. As unborn babies have been proven to feel pain after 18 weeks, abortion could physically hurt it; it can also mentally harm the woman. Another argument is that adoption is a more responsible option, as many families want to adopt. Extra arguments include that abortion decreases human respect for all life, and could therefore encourage murder and other murderous activities.
Nevertheless there are circumstances when members of the major world religions would allow abortion; In Buddhism abortion is acceptable if the child is severely handicapped and, if allowed to live, would undergo suffering. In Islam abortion is permissible if in the event of not doing so, the mother would die. They go by the law of Sharia; selecting the lesser of two evils. Killing the baby is worse than letting the mother die because the mother has a well-established life, with a family and responsibilities, and letting the mother die but baby live would decrease the chances of life for the baby anyway.
Added to these there are a number of secular views in support of abortion. Pro-Choice groups defend the right of the mother to choose whether or not to abort the baby from her body. For example they argue that a collection of cells do not have a right to live just because they are of the human species, as this would mean aborting a limb would be murder. They believe that a woman has a moral right to choose to abort a baby or not, she has ownership of her body and a right to decide her future, with or without children.
It’s my belief that abortion should be allowed as the laws state in the UK now. I think women should always have the right to choose whether or not to abort. I agree that the woman has more rights than a baby in her womb. I think this because it is the woman who will have to deal with the baby once it is born, and have to support it, or deal with the mental and physical pain of child birth, or giving it away. However as many couples cannot have children I think adoption should be considered first, but I would leave this up to the woman. I also think that abortion should not be used nilly-willy, and couples should have safe sex and take all precautions necessary if they are unready to have a child.