By Thabisani Dube
Harare — The Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference (ZCBC) has called on Senators to vote against the proposed Medical Services Bill, warning that it could pave the way for the legalisation of abortion in Zimbabwe.
In a pastoral statement dated 13 December 2025 and read at Catholic Masses nationwide on Sunday, the bishops urged congregants to pray and actively engage their legislators ahead of an anticipated Senate vote on amendments to the Termination of Pregnancy Act.
Although the Bill does not explicitly propose the legalisation of abortion, the bishops said its proposed changes would effectively expand access to pregnancy termination, a move they strongly oppose.
“As the Church we are totally against abortion,” the statement reads, appealing to people of faith and citizens who value life to resist the proposed law.
The bishops called on Catholics and other concerned Zimbabweans to contact their Senators and urge them to vote against the Bill, describing the proposed changes as a threat to the sanctity of life.
They contrasted the current debate with Zimbabwe’s recent abolition of the death penalty, warning that approving the Bill would represent a moral reversal. “History will judge us harshly for failing to defend the lives of the weaker members of our society,” the statement said.
Reaffirming Catholic teaching, the ZCBC said it upholds the sanctity of life from conception to natural death, a principle it said is also reflected in Zimbabwean cultural values.
The bishops urged continued prayer for lawmakers in the days leading up to the vote and appealed directly to Senators to act according to their consciences. Citing Deuteronomy 30:19, they encouraged legislators to “choose life.”
The statement was signed by ZCBC President Bishop Paul Horan of Mutare, Vice President Archbishop Robert Christopher Ndlovu of Harare, Secretary and Treasurer Bishop Raphael Ncube of Hwange, Archbishop Alex Thomas of Bulawayo, Bishop Rudolf Nyandoro of Gweru, Bishop Raymond Mupandasekwa of Masvingo and Administrator of Chinhoyi, and Bishop Eusebius Nyathi of Gokwe.
The Medical Services Bill is expected to be debated in the Senate in the coming days, ahead of a possible vote.
