Romania has ruled that a young rape and incest victim may be allowed to have an abortion. The shocking news is that this was a very controversial ruling.

"I want to go to school and to play. If I can't do this my life will be a nightmare,'" the 11-year-old wrote in a letter to the government committee deciding her fate. Already, the girl had been shunned by her former friends because of her pregnancy.

Romanian law prohibits abortions after 14 weeks, unless the mother’s life is in jeopardy, and the preteen girl was 21 weeks pregnant. An earlier abortion was not possible since no one, presumably not even the girl herself, knew she was pregnant. Her parents took her to a doctor on June 2 because she seemed sick. There, she told doctors that she was raped by her 19-year-old uncle, whose current whereabouts are unknown.

The mainly orthodox country is divided over the ruling. Pro-life groups have rallied for the pregnant child to give birth, offering to care for the baby after it is born. But child rights organizations say the young victim should not be made to undergo further hardship. Even the Orthodox Church aired on the side of tolerance, arguing that although abortion is a crime, this is an extraordinary situation that can only be decided by the girl and her family.

Photo: Romanian girls on a holiday (pbase.com)