Net abortion blog sparks controversy

A woman blogger has added fresh fuel to the heated abortion debate that divides America by posting online detailed and explicit instructions on how to perform such an operation.

She said she had received half-a-dozen death threats as a result.

The blogger, who uses the pseudonym Molly Blythe, said she was inspired to post the DIY abortion guide after the recent signing of legislation in South Dakota that outlaws abortion, even in cases of rape and incest.

The only exception to the new law would be if the woman's life was threatened by the pregnancy.

"Myself and some friends have been collecting this information for the last couple of years because we believed that Roe versus Wade [the 1973 Supreme Court case that affords women the right to an abortion] was not going to be around for ever," the 21-year-old-blogger said yesterday. "We had to take steps to make sure this information was available."

The guide - titled For the Women of South Dakota: An Abortion Manual lists the equipment required and the procedure for a dilation and curettage - or D and C - abortion.

"My philosophy is if you don't want to have an abortion, don't have one," Blythe said. "But people have the right to know exactly what is involved."
The abortion issue has long been used by conservatives as a political organising tool but opinion polls suggest that last week's decision in South Dakota is not in keeping with the views of most Americans.

In the most recent survey, commissioned by The New York Times in January, 38 per cent supported access to abortion, 39 per cent felt abortion should be available but with stricter restrictions and 21 per cent supported making abortion illegal.

- INDEPENDENT