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The US decision[/B] to ban abortion is unbelievable, said internationally renowned Cypriot scientist, Dr. Cyprus Nicolaides, noting that it will take a generation to overturn it.
Dr Nicolaides was speaking as part of a lecture on Saturday at the English School, from which he graduated in 1971. The event was attended by 100 students from the English School, as well as his classmates. The lecture by the eminent scientist, who hails from Paphos, was entitled "My journey in Fetal Medicine". During the lecture, Dr Nicolaides presented his career in the field, referring to the major milestones in his research journey from the 1970s to the present day. Indicatively, he referred to the progress made in the diagnosis of Down syndrome in fetuses, in the prediction and prevention of pre-eclampsia and premature delivery, citing several examples from his patients.
Asked about the US Supreme Court's decision to ban abortion, Dr Nicolaides said that the democratic right of 70% of American women to abortion has been restricted, either because they were raped or because they did not want to get pregnant, or because their child had an abnormality. "It's unbelievable that the most advanced democracy in the world would decide to take away the most basic democratic right from 70% of the population. That says a lot about democracy," he suggested. Furthermore, he noted that a huge effort must be made to overturn this decision, which will take a generation, because six of the nine Supreme Court justices in the US are ultra-conservative. The southern American states, he explained, are conservative. "The more conservative they are, the more likely they are to ban women's right to choose."
Asked how he feels about being back at the English School 51 years after graduating, he said he feels extremely proud to be back at the school and was particularly moved by the enthusiasm of the students and teachers. "Most importantly, I feel proud because I am a Cypriot," he added.
In response to a question about the English School, he said the school "has left him with very pleasant memories" and that it has excellent academic standards. Asked if he had any Cypriot students studying with him, he noted that the charitable foundation he has established gives 80 scholarships to students, including Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots.
Since Dr. Nicolaides specializes in fetal medicine and prenatal surgery, when asked about his future research, he replied that he will continue research especially in the field of pre-eclampsia and premature birth which, he said, are the most important problems leading to maternal and child deaths.
For her part, Popi Kanari, director of the Karaiskakio Foundation and a classmate of Dr. Nicolaides, said that "it is a pleasure and honor to have him in our group of classmates." "We have always felt Cyprus very close to us," she said, adding that Dr Nicolaides was a student with an ingenious mind, his mind always wanting to investigate and see outside the box. "I'm not surprised he had these successes. He makes us very happy and we wish him good health and progress, because he still has a lot to offer with his experience, but more so with his passion," he concluded.
Source: CNA
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