Member of Parliament Juliet Cuthbert Flynn - file photo
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Juliet Cuthbert Flynn
Member of Parliament Juliet Cuthbert Flynn has scoffed at a call by a church leader for Prime Minister Andrew Holness to rein her in with regards to her stance on abortion.
In a statement Monday, Bishop Alvin Bailey, Chairman of Jamaica Cause and Vice President of the Jamaica Association of Evangelicals, called for action from the Prime Minister regarding Mrs Cuthbert Flynn's public support of a conscience vote on abortion.
However, in an interview with Radio Jamaica later on Monday, Mrs Cuthbert Flynn, who is also Minister of State in the Ministry of Health & Wellness, said she was unclear what action the clergyman expects the Prime Minister to take given she is a duly elected Member of Parliament.
"I'm really not sure what the VP of the church meant by reining in me and for the Prime Minister to rein me in. I think first I must get a clarification from the clergyman because we're not living in the 50s anymore. I'm an elected official," she asserted.
Mrs Cuthbert Flynn said she remains unbothered by such comments in her bid to have Jamaica's anti-abortion law changed.
"My stand remains. The law is outdated. The Offences Against the Person Act is outdated and it is time that we amend it. It is time that we give the right for women to choose and it is their body," she explained, adding that "we live in a democracy" where both the clergyman and herself are free to have opposing views.
The MP reignited the debate on abortion in 2018 when she tabled a motion in the House of Representatives for the government to consider relaxing the abortion laws to ensure that women have access to safe abortions.
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