Group challenges law covering foetus burial
Parents who lose a foetus younger than 26 weeks do not have the right to bury or cremate the remains – but that could change. A Pretoria News says the remains are regarded as medical waste and accordingly disposed of by a hospital. However, the question on what should to happen to the remains of a foetus due to pregnancy loss at 26 weeks or earlier is now due to form the subject of a legal battle.
The Voice of the Unborn Baby is taking on legislation with the aim of allowing parents to choose whether or not they buried the remains of the foetuses.
In its constitutional challenge against the provisions of Births and Deaths Registration Act, the group claims grieving parents had the right to decide on what to do with the remains of the foetus. In papers filed at the Gauteng High Court (Pretoria), the group’s co-founder Sonja Smith said the application related to the loss of pregnancy by expecting parents, the emotional consequences of their loss and how government should deal with the bereaved parents in the constitutional dispensation.
Smith explained that the purpose of this constitutional challenge was to make the legal regime that governed burial of foetuses less rigid and more in tune with the human side of bereavement in the event of pregnancy loss.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
