Pro-lifers around the world are applauding an 11-year-old girl who was raped by her stepfather and subsequently vocalized her love for her unborn child despite the tragic circumstances. According to LifeSiteNews, the girl, who is being called “Belén” to protect her privacy, said:
…I am going to love her a lot, no matter what – even if she is from that man who hurt me.
These simple words betray the compassion of a young child who knows where to assign responsibility for what happened to her: “that man who hurt me.” Her stepfather is currently in jail awaiting trial.
Despite the obvious love Belén has for her child, and her desire to give birth to her child, abortion advocates have made many attempts to show that Belén is too young to know the implications of her decision, or else is not being offered fair options (i.e., no one is offering to kill her baby) for her pregnancy.
One thing seems certain: Belén is aware that the implication of her pregnancy is a child, whom she will love. Her simple perspective – unencumbered by the doom and gloom that the abortion lobby places on unplanned pregnancy – is refreshing. At the end of the day, abortion advocates would rather see Belén as a young woman who is the mother of a dead baby than as a young woman who bravely yet happily faced the joys and hardships that accompany being a mother at her young age. Perhaps Belén recognizes that in the end, the joy of a new life outweighs and outlives the sorrow of how it came to be.
Despite the abortion-mindedness of many leaders who have opined about her condition, Belén received praise and encouragement from the president of her country, Sebastian Pinera:
Yesterday [Belén] surprised us all with words that demonstrated depth and maturity when she said that despite the pain that the man who had raped her had caused, she was going to love and care for her newborn.
Although abortion advocates who decry lack of access to abortion in countries like Chile often cite danger to the mother’s life as a reason why abortion should be utilized in cases like Belén’s, they fail to recognize the measures that these countries have taken to put women first. As Pinera explained during his address, Chile’s first concern is the life of the mother:
When they reach 22 weeks of pregnancy, that is, eight weeks from now, if it is necessary a premature birth will have to be done in accordance with her care, because in our country the life of the mother always comes first.
