Although Liechtenstein's parliament approved an initiative to allow elective abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy by a vote of 13-12 last week, the law has not yet taken effect, as Hereditary Prince Alois previously announced his veto.
"It gives one pause to consider that, on the one hand, women are seeking inpatient obstetric care in neighboring countries to give birth to their children, while on the other hand, we are currently discussing the creation of conditions for terminating pregnancies within our own country," said Bishop Benno Elbs, apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Vaduz, in a statement dated Aug. 21. "It seems to me that something has become unbalanced here." The principality has not had its own maternity ward for several years.
"The Church's concern is directed in particular toward all people in vulnerable life situations: unborn children and their parents, people with disabilities, refugees, as well as the elderly and the sick. They all depend in a special way on care, guidance, and concrete support," Elbs wrote.
The initiative, titled "Fristenlösung für Liechtenstein" ("term-based solution for Liechtenstein"), calls for the legalization of elective abortion during the first 12 weeks, the lifting of a ban on doctors providing information about abortion services, and the transfer of costs to health insurance providers. Under Sections 96–98a of the criminal code, abortion is prohibited, with exceptions for cases of rape or serious danger to the life or health of the pregnant woman. Since 2015, women who travel abroad for an abortion have not been subject to criminal prosecution.
At the end of July, the initiative committee submitted 4,970 signatures; 1,000 would have been required. Nearly a quarter of all eligible voters in the principality backed the initiative. "Criminalization and the ban on providing information make it considerably more difficult to make an informed and self-determined decision," the committee's website states. There are no official statistics on abortions in Liechtenstein.
In a separate vote, the 25-member Landtag rejected, by the same margin of 13-12 on Sept. 2, a proposal to put the measure to a popular referendum. A referendum would have been mandatory only if the parliament had rejected the initiative. The public vote, which had been expected in the fall, will therefore not take place.
Hereditary prince has the last word
The law has not yet come into effect. "For any law to take effect, in addition to the approval of the Landtag, the prince's sanction, the countersignature of the responsible head of government or his deputy, and publication in the Official Gazette are required," states Article 65 of the Liechtenstein constitution. "If the prince's sanction is not granted within six months, it is deemed to have been refused."
Hereditary Prince Alois, who exercises sovereign authority on behalf of his father, Prince Hans-Adam II, has not yet formally exercised his veto. The head of state did not comment following the vote. He has six months to sign the law.
"The main reason is that, when it comes to time-limit regulations, the central legal principle of the protection of life is not sufficiently upheld," the communications department of the Princely House told the news agency Keystone-SDA, explaining the rationale behind the anticipated veto.
In June, the hereditary prince stated in an interview with the newspaper Liechtensteiner Vaterland that the regulation in Liechtenstein must continue to be "based on a criminal-law framework with a system of specific exceptions."
"With the time-limit regulation, the state effectively withdraws from its responsibility to grant the unborn child a right to protection during the permitted period," he said. For him, it is a matter of "a fundamental commitment to the protection of life and not a ban on abortion."
Regarding his earlier announcement, he said: "On such fundamental issues as the protection of life, a head of state should take a clear stand and also bear responsibility — even if that is the more difficult path."
Bishop calls for support for families
For Elbs, the protection of life and support for families go hand in hand. "From my experience as a pastor and psychotherapist, I am aware of the often difficult situations in which women and young families can find themselves," Elbs wrote. "The protection of life must therefore not be considered in isolation from comprehensive support: through empathetic counseling, sustainable social networks, and financial and practical assistance."
"Our goal must be a society in which women and couples are not left to fend for themselves and in which saying 'yes' to life becomes possible," he said.
Elbs praised the work of the Sophie von Liechtenstein Foundation, which has supported pregnant women, young parents, and families in challenging situations in Liechtenstein, Austria, and Switzerland for many years.
According to Church teaching, human life is under God's special protection from the moment of conception. "With the authority conferred by Christ upon Peter and his successors, I therefore affirm, in communion with the bishops of the Catholic Church, that the direct and voluntary killing of an innocent human being is always a grave moral offense," declared St. John Paul II in 1995 in Evangelium Vitae.
This story was first published by CNA Deutsch, the German-language sister service of EWTN News, and has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
