An alarming number of young teens had abortions in 2009 in the small country of New Zealand, leading to calls for parental involvement laws, according to The Press.

Seventy-nine unborn babies were aborted by girls age 11–14. The 2009 statistic is lower than the peak, which was 105 in 2005, The Press reported. In addition to these young teenagers, 3,873 girls age 15-19 had abortions last year.

"Figures obtained by Family First from Statistics NZ also show that 529 of these teenagers have had a previous abortion and 67 girls are on to their 3rd or more abortion," Marina Young, spokesperson for pro-life group Family First NZ, said in a press release. "Teen abortions account for just over a quarter of all abortions in 2009. Since 1991, the number of teens having an abortion has increased by almost 70%."

New Zealand has a population of only about 4.25 million. To put these numbers into context, in the United States, with its population of over 300 million, 3,550 girls under 15 had abortions in 2006, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Girls up to the age of 19 aborted 116,613 babies in America that year.

In all, New Zealand women aborted 17,550 unborn babies in 2009, which was the lowest in three years, the New Zealand Press Association reported. The highest number of abortions in the country was in 2003, when 18,500 babies died.

Family First is seeking a law that would let parents know when their daughter is seeking an abortion. "Abortion is the only procedure or event in a teenager's life where for no good reason good parents are legally excluded," director Bob McCoskrie told The Press. He cited a Family First-commissioned poll that found 80% of New Zealanders support a parental involvement law.

The Parliament considered a parental notification bill in 2004, but it was not passed, according to The Press.

"This is a tragedy for the girls involved, some as young as 11," Young added. "It is also devastating for the extended family, especially if the young girl has been sneaked off for the abortion by Family Planning or a School Counselor without the parents' knowledge or consent. [I]t is time to revisit the abortion-on-demand culture that currently exists in NZ."