Malta’s Archbishop has waded into the abortion debate as the world’s media reports on one US mother’s ongoing saga on the island.

In an speech marking the Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist today, Archbishop Charles Scicluna said he wanted to salute parents who are expecting a baby, as well as the doctors instrumental in delivering babies, before he discussed the topic of decriminalising abortion in Malta.

“Today, I would like to salute parents who are expecting a baby; and we also pray for doctors to do all they can to save both the baby and the mother in cases where the couple is experiencing difficulties in the pregnancy; and if they cannot save the baby, no law tells you that the mother will be left to die; including Maltese legislation,” Newsbook reported.

“We do not have to introduce abortion to save the mother. So we pray for couples, for whom pregnancy can be a time of anxiety, a very dangerous journey.”

His comments come as 38-year-old US national Andrea Prudente is seeking to terminate her 16 weeks pregnancy after her waters broke, leaving the foetus without any amniotic fluid to feed off of.

Prudente was admitted to hospital with severe bleeding in her 16th week of pregnancy and doctors told her that her placenta had become partially detached and the baby had a “zero chance” of survival. 

Yet, as per Malta’s strict anti-abortion laws, doctors told her they couldn’t terminate the pregnancy as long as the foetus had a heartbeat. She is now set to travel abroad to undergo the termination after her insurance company gave her the green light, declaring the situation a “matter of life and death”. 

Scicluna continued to speak of the “dignity” of all living creatures.

“We pray that the dignity of every creature from its inception will always be respected and that there will be no idea that those who are not perfect will be discarded, because God does not reject anyone. Otherwise we would be pretending to be gods, but foolish gods,” Scicluna continued.

He urged listeners to remember that “we Maltese need to pray a lot for the Lord to enlighten our leaders to make good choices; also to those who are studying to make life easier, not to promote death”.

Prudente’s case has reopened the controversial topic of decriminalising access to abortion on the island. According to Article 241 of Malta’s Criminal Code, a mother who received an abortion can face up to three years in prison.