Attorney-General refers SA abortion debate ‘game’ for investigation
Kyam Maher has confirmed a controversial “fun game”, that involved payments for a prize by anti-abortion campaigner Joanna Howe, has been referred to a government department for investigation.
Attorney-General and Deputy Premier Kyam Maher has committed to referring ‘Sarah’s Game’ – run by anti-abortion lobbyist Joanna Howe – to Consumer and Business Services, the SA department responsible for lottery compliance.
A Consumer and Business Services spokesperson told InDaily on Friday that “Consumer and Business Services is aware of the matters raised in parliament this week and is considering them”.
Maher was prompted to refer the issue after InDaily’s reporting on Howe’s fundraiser was raised in question time by Greens MLC Robert Simms on Wednesday.
Howe, who helped write MLC Sarah Game’s late-term abortion bill, ran the “game” on her website where people could “buy words” for prices ranging from $1 to $70 in relation to their potential use during the debate over the bill on Wednesday night.
The first prize win was a dinner with Howe, who has a doctorate in law philosophy, and her husband James, second prize was a $500 voucher and third prize was a $250 voucher.
Maher said in state parliament on Wednesday that “it would depend on a whole range of circumstances as to whether it is complying with, I think, the Lotteries Act and Regulations in South Australia”.
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“There are certain requirements around things depending on the value of the prizes,” he said.
“Whether it is a major lottery and licences need to be applied for and certain information provided about that lottery, or whether it is a minor lottery, in which case, from memory, there are still administrative things you need to do to comply with lotteries schemes and legislation.”
Simms told InDaily he found the game concept “utterly reprehensible”.
“It is trivialising the issue and the experiences of women. It is also debasing for the parliament itself,” Simms said.
“I welcome the fact that the Attorney General is taking this matter seriously and that this has been referred to the relevant agency.”
Game, leader of the Sarah Game Fair Go for Australians Party, told InDaily on Wednesday she was not involved in the game and did not feel strongly about it happening.
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“We’ve got to live in a world where we don’t get offended and upset by things like that so easily,” Game told InDaily.
“What upsets me is like the termination of a healthy baby, so I don’t feel strongly about it. I think Jo is a very successful social media campaigner.”
Howe’s webpage that was used to run the game was live and publicly accessible on Wednesday, but when InDaily attempted to access the site on Friday morning it required an ‘Australia Life’ login to access the website.
Australia Life Pty Ltd is the business name Howe uses to receive donations to her pro-life cause.
Donations to Howe are not tax-deductible, according to her website, and the business does not appear on the Australian charity register.
Howe’s Australia Life company also received donations via a Pro-life Health Professionals Australia website, which specifies “donations to Dr Joanna Howe (AUSTRALIA LIFE PTY LTD) totalling more than $16,900 from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025 will be disclosed to the Australian Electoral Commission and be available to the public”.
Howe did not respond to InDaily’s questions about the game this week, but posted to her social media accounts on Wednesday after the story’s publication and said “the left is melting down over our game”.
She said on Wednesday’s social media post that “all funds raised will go towards our work to save the babies”.
During Wednesday’s debate on the anti-abortion bill, Independent MLC Tammy Franks likened the game to something out of the dystopian television series Black Mirror.
“This is not an episode of Black Mirror. This is literally something that happened in SA,” Franks said.
Howe was the third biggest spender in the country on Meta advertising in the past month spending about $96,000, according to Meta’s advertising spend tracker.
