Right to Life Association of Western Australia

‘Defending life from conception to natural death for more than fifty years’

The Right to Life Association of WA (RTLAWA) was formed in the 1970s in Karratha by Peter O’Meara. Originally from Victoria, Peter was a union shop steward in the early days of Pilbara mining. He was also very concerned about the attacks on life, particularly abortion and euthanasia, that it could be argued were already commonplace in WA (albeit still illegal), at the time.

The RTLAWA moved to Perth and was incorporated in 1979, with similar associations forming in every state in Australia around the same time. Today, we have around 1700 members across the state. We keep in touch using email, social media, text, post, and in person.

We are unashamedly Christian and do our work in order to advance Christ’s kingdom on Earth. The RTLAWA work to promote and maintain the rights of the unborn as legal persons.

We support palliative care that does not hasten the death of people who are terminally ill, and we stand against any other attacks on life, such as those currently being suggested for the physically and mentally challenged.

We have many programmes designed to advance our objectives. For example, we provide food and care packs for women living on the streets who often find themselves compromised sexually. We communicate with politicians and the community, urging support for the social, health and public welfare of any individual affected by a pregnancy – mothers, fathers, siblings and the unborn. We also organise public awareness campaigns, including film nights, public walks, rallies at Parliament House, and media articles and newsletters.

Our target is both Christians who are pro-life, and also members of the secular world.

Christians often need to be encouraged in the pro-life fight, so we help by installing plaques in Christian churches and other places, offering talks, and holding dinners. We also organise donations of food, clothing, and baby furniture to new Mums in need.

For many years we held peaceful, loving, prayer vigils outside the two main abortion clinics in Perth, but today that has been outlawed under the so-called ‘bubble law,’ so we host a prayer vigil at Parliament House every year instead. Our aim here, as with all our activities, is to change the hearts and minds of people. We want people to choose life, the first gift from God.

Our brave members also participate in public walks aimed at getting the Christian pro-life message out to the secular world. Reaction to these walks, as you might expect, is mixed.

The RTLAWA also supports abortion grief counsellors to help (mostly) mothers who have had abortions deal with their grief and guilt and seeking forgiveness from the Lord. This work can be very challenging for counsellors, especially as the link between multiple abortions and the mother’s experience of sexual abuse as a child is undeniable. We also work with Aboriginal people for whom motherhood and respect of the aged is so important.

We are developing a Euthanasia Prevention Kit which is intended to leave medical staff in no doubt as to the pro-life stance of the wearer. Our Association supports any pro-life Christian candidate for State and Federal Parliament, and we are supporters and participants in the Families for Life expo here in Perth.

One of our aims is to bring all Christian, Pro-Life people together to work in the defence of Life. To that end we are members of the International Right to Life Federation and 40 Days for Life. Our office is currently working with our Queensland and ACT counterparts to form a pro-Life Federation of Australia.

The Right to Life Association of WA is always in need of volunteers, donations and of course, money! If you would like to help in any of these ways, please give Steve Klomp a call on 0417 184 789, or email steve@righttolifewa.co. You can also visit our website at www.righttolifewa.co.

Please note that whilst we at Lutherans for Life want to share information from organisations that work towards promoting and supporting the value of every human life, we do not necessarily agree with all the thoughts and opinions that may be expressed.