
A Matter of Choice: Abortion Law Reform in Apartheid South Africa - Hadeda books (Paperback)
June Cope (author)
£13.95
Paperback
192 Pages /
Published: 31/12/1996
- Not available
South Africa's abortion laws are more harshly restrictive than the legislation in many other Western countries and have given rise to an active campaign for amendments and the recognition that women should have the right to choose. In 1972, June Cope founded the Abortion Reform Action Group (ARAG) which campaigned for enlightened legislation, especially when the Nationalist government set up a Commission to investigate abortion. Drawing on her own experiences, interviews and correspondence, Cope argues in this book that the oppressive abortion law of 1975 - only slightly amended since then - did not reflect public opinion as its perpetrators claimed, and that the Commission misrepresented the evidence put before it. In South Africa, the reform movement was opposed not only by the usual anti-abortion arguments, but also by an "unseen hand". Cope offers evidence that points to the source of this influence, exposing the government's determination to increase the white population to maintain the unreal fabric of apartheid society.
Cope's account of the passing of the 1975 Abortion and Sterilization Act is followed by an examination of its effects on doctors, hospitals and the women who suffered under its restrictions. When amendments to the legislation were not forthcoming, Cope took an independent line and pursued more radical solutions in neighbouring countries and the "homelands".
Publisher: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press
ISBN: 9780869808870
Number of pages: 192
Weight: 272 g
Dimensions: 210 x 140 mm
You may also be interested in...
Please sign in to write a review
Sign In
Sign In
Click & Collect
Simply reserve online and pay at the counter when you collect.
Available in shop from just two hours, subject to availability.
Thank you for your reservation
Your order is now being processed and we have sent a confirmation email to you at
When will my order be ready to collect?
Following the initial email, you will be contacted by the shop to confirm that your item is available for collection.
Call us on or send us an email at
Unfortunately there has been a problem with your order
Please try again or alternatively you can contact your chosen shop on or send us an email at