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New ZelandJustice places “Baby W” under partial guardianship
The Auckland High Court on Wednesday temporarily revoked custody of a sick child whose parents refused to allow him to receive blood from vaccinated donors.
“The overriding question is whether the proposed treatment is in the best interests of the child,” the court said in a statement. Illustrative photo.
IMAGO/Cavan images
A court on Wednesday ruled in favor of New Zealand authorities who feared for the life of a child. He temporarily withdrew custody of the child whose parents they were against a surgical operation intended to save his lifefearing that he would receive blood from donors vaccinated against Covid-19.
The Auckland High Court has ordered six-month-old ‘Baby W’ to be placed in partial guardianship as he underwent emergency surgery for a heart condition called valve stenosis.
No messenger RNA vaccines
His parents had objected to this surgery, demanding that blood that could be transfused in the operating room come from donors who had not received any messenger RNA vaccine against Covid-19.
“The overriding question is whether the proposed treatment is in (the child’s) interest,” the court said in a statement.
Under guardianship until the “end of operation”
The child is now under the “medical surveillance of the Court” until the “end of the operation” and his recovery, by the end of January at the latest.
Parents retain authority over the child except for medical care. They will be “informed at any reasonable time of the nature of the treatment provided to child w and the evolution of his condition,” according to the ruling.
shocked country
This case shocked the country and highlighted the significant misinformation around vaccination. Health agency spokesman Mike Shepherd said this was “a difficult situation for everyone involved”. “The decision to submit a request like this to the court is always taken with the best interests of the child in mind,” he stressed. The child is being treated at a children’s hospital in Auckland.
When the court’s decision was announced, anti-vax campaigner Liz Gunn asked the few people who came to support the family to pressure Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to reverse her decision. Health authorities had rejected the parents’ request for “unvaccinated blood”, arguing it was impractical and unnecessary.
Vaccinated blood not separated
Hospitals do not separate blood donated by the vaccinated from that of the unvaccinated, neither category presents more risk than the other. The family says they have dozens of unvaccinated donors waiting. “This is a very unusual case where parents want better treatment for their child than what the state is offering,” Sue Gray, the parents’ attorney, said in November.
“We are there because we have a government and a blood bank … (that) don’t want to make these services available,” he said.
(AFP extension)
