As a morally repugnant response to your query: in Canada, there is no controlling law regarding abortion. Zero. Zip. Our Supreme Court struck down our abortion law as unconstitutional in 1988 and Parliament failed in its one attempt to pass a new law to replace it a year or two later (it deadlocked in the Senate).
As a consequence, a fetus has absolutely no status in Canadian law. It isn't recognized, it has no voice, no standing, nothing. Your scenario, where a 9-month pregnant woman is assaulted and the fetus dies? It results in exactly your outcome. Assault against the woman, probably aggravated assault, but the fetus is a legal nullity. No charge can be brought regarding its terrible fate.
From time to time, backbenchers in the Conservative party have attempted to introduce bills that would address this by allowing such a charge to be filed. At every attempt it is shouted down by the left as a dangerous and unacceptable intrusion upon a woman's sacrosanct right to abortion on demand. Conservative party leaders and hopefuls must, upon demand of the left and of the press, vow never to introduce legislation regarding abortion. If they do not they are savagely attacked by those same actors.
Canada is utterly unable to acknowledge that our legal stance on abortion makes us an extreme outlier in democratic societies. Such is life in the great progressive north.
As an interesting aside, when I.M. says "shouted down" I think he means literally. In our congressional hearings there is no "shouting". In Canada they shout at one another almost, or certainly raise their voice. Also, In Canada, apparently heckling from non-MP's is allowed, but the Speaker of the Parliament (is he or she called something different there?) acted almost like a referee and when the heckling got to loud they put a stop to it. I found watching Parliament interesting recently.
You're not wrong in that heckling is a fairly common occurrence in Westminster style parliamentary democracies, but in this case I was using it figuratively. Abortion is a third rail of Canadian politics, at least for the right. Any attempt to touch it leads to howls of outrage from our elites, our media, etc. that the right to an abortion is sacrosanct and how dare any Conservative propose a measure that might just be a stalking horse to taking away or even putting the slightest of limits upon that right.
Every Conservative leader has to go through the performance of vowing that he will not allow any legislation concerning abortion to be introduced were he to become prime minister. The language he uses must be unambiguously clear else he is accused of harboring a hidden agenda. Such is the Canadian left and Canadian culture, which is predominantly left. We almost make California look sane.
As a morally repugnant response to your query: in Canada, there is no controlling law regarding abortion. Zero. Zip. Our Supreme Court struck down our abortion law as unconstitutional in 1988 and Parliament failed in its one attempt to pass a new law to replace it a year or two later (it deadlocked in the Senate).
As a consequence, a fetus has absolutely no status in Canadian law. It isn't recognized, it has no voice, no standing, nothing. Your scenario, where a 9-month pregnant woman is assaulted and the fetus dies? It results in exactly your outcome. Assault against the woman, probably aggravated assault, but the fetus is a legal nullity. No charge can be brought regarding its terrible fate.
From time to time, backbenchers in the Conservative party have attempted to introduce bills that would address this by allowing such a charge to be filed. At every attempt it is shouted down by the left as a dangerous and unacceptable intrusion upon a woman's sacrosanct right to abortion on demand. Conservative party leaders and hopefuls must, upon demand of the left and of the press, vow never to introduce legislation regarding abortion. If they do not they are savagely attacked by those same actors.
Canada is utterly unable to acknowledge that our legal stance on abortion makes us an extreme outlier in democratic societies. Such is life in the great progressive north.
As an interesting aside, when I.M. says "shouted down" I think he means literally. In our congressional hearings there is no "shouting". In Canada they shout at one another almost, or certainly raise their voice. Also, In Canada, apparently heckling from non-MP's is allowed, but the Speaker of the Parliament (is he or she called something different there?) acted almost like a referee and when the heckling got to loud they put a stop to it. I found watching Parliament interesting recently.
I.M. : did I describe it accurately?
You're not wrong in that heckling is a fairly common occurrence in Westminster style parliamentary democracies, but in this case I was using it figuratively. Abortion is a third rail of Canadian politics, at least for the right. Any attempt to touch it leads to howls of outrage from our elites, our media, etc. that the right to an abortion is sacrosanct and how dare any Conservative propose a measure that might just be a stalking horse to taking away or even putting the slightest of limits upon that right.
Every Conservative leader has to go through the performance of vowing that he will not allow any legislation concerning abortion to be introduced were he to become prime minister. The language he uses must be unambiguously clear else he is accused of harboring a hidden agenda. Such is the Canadian left and Canadian culture, which is predominantly left. We almost make California look sane.
Wow. Learned a lot aboot Canada this year. ( that of course was in good humor eh? 😀)
Feel free to rib this Native Tex for her “y’alls”.
On a serious note: I weep for Canada and Israel and a couple other countries and their people.
This is heartbreakingly sad.