Two newborn babies in a week. One swathed in bubble wrap and left to die in a drain. The other naked and buried crudely in the sand to be found by two little kids who will always be scarred by their horror day at the beach.
One mother who has been charged with attempted murder.
Another being sought by police for questioning after an autopsy today revealed she was a newborn little girl.
Two scenes – a week apart.Right now, today, as you read this post, there are thousands of women around Australia who are pregnant and who desperately don’t want to be. They may be distressed or depressed, ashamed or horrified, shocked or frantic about the prospect of having a baby they don’t want or can’t take care of.
Some of these women are teenagers but the majority are not. The myth of unwanted pregnancies only happening to naive, irresponsible young girls is an outdated one. There are myriad complex reasons why a woman doesn’t want to have a baby. Religious reasons. Financial reasons. Medical reasons. Mental health reasons.
You may also be interested in reading: Why we urgently need safe drop-off centres for abandoned babies.
She might be in a violent or abusive relationship.
She might be single and unable or unwilling to raise a baby alone.
She might have other children whose welfare will be compromised by the strain of another baby.
She might be unmarried and from a family or culture who do not accept babies born outside marriage.
She might feel that her family is complete, that she’s done having babies.
Her partner may have suddenly disappeared from her life.
Her husband might not want to be a Dad again.
She might just have different plans for her life that don’t involve being a mother at this point.
Top Comments
I am seriously just a bit over the " just adopt it out" attitude that so many people have. Adoption is a long term answer to a short term problem. Families are not interchangeable. Women, or men for that matter, who murder their children are not going to adopt them out.
We dont even know if this baby was murdered......
Clearly a person who leaves their baby to die is not capable of parenting that child. Surely that child is better off in a secure loving adoptive family? I don't see how leaving a child to die is a short term problem. Even if mental illness is involved the mother will not be a fit parent.
I don't think anyone is saying adoption is simple. The article states the decisions are "difficult, heart-wrenching" ones including adoption. Perhaps if this woman/women did look into options she would be more aware of the complexities of adoption but at least the child would be alive and have a hope for a happy future.
I think this is a great article for listing all the practical support available to women, but I have to say if a woman can't figure out for herself that killing a baby shouldn't be an option what hope is there?