What is Wonaac?

The current campaign to repeal the abortion laws dates back to the National Women's Liberation Conference held in Wellington in April 1972. From this conference, education activities and public protests for repeal of the laws were launched for the first week of May. Because of the response to these activities, the Committee which had organised them decided to continue, and to campaign around the following demands:

Repeal of the abortion laws, freely available contraception for all who want it, voluntary sterilisation, and a realistic sex education programme at all levels of schooling.

By early 1973, it was obvious that the campaign appealed primarily to women and was being organised by women for their right to control their reproductive lives. As a logical next step, the word "Women's" was added to the name of the Abortion Action Committee. At this stage, Committees were functioning in the three main centres.

From the outset, the campaign has concentrated on involving as many women as possible, for it is women who suffer under these laws and it is women who must act to change them. Activities have included marches and pickets, public meetings, deputations to Parliament and debates with the opposition.

With the campaign growing in different centres, the need for more efficient coordination grew. A conference was held in Wellington, July 14—15, 1973 and the Women's National Abortion Action Campaign (Wonaac) was launched from this. Its task is to co-ordinate nationally a woman's action campaign for the demands listed above.

Wonaac includes women from a number of different organisations, and seeks to unite in action a broad spectrum of groups and individuals in the community who feel that abortion is a matter of individual choice, not a matter to be decided by the law.

The campaign's action perspective is based on a recognition of the need to keep the campaign visible, so that it can attract public attention and support, and bring the government's attention to the problem in a way which it cannot easily ignore. In addition, a visible, active women's campaign can give confidence to the thousands of women too intimidated by anti-abortion propaganda to be convinced as yet that the right to choose abortion can be won.

Wonaac is confident that large numbers of women will join the campaign, putting pressure on the government to make abortion a matter of choice, for all women.