National Vigil for Life. June 8th. Merrion Sq. 3pm

Thousands of people are working hard to oppose the Government’s destructive abortion proposal. Thank you for playing YOUR part.

We simply must keep the effort up to stop this appalling legislation. As things stand, two psychiatrists, with an obstetrician on the sidelines, will be able to sign away the life of a child of a healthy mother. This is a travesty of good medicine.

There can be no question of pessimism on our side or resignation that all this is going to happen. We must oppose this at every step – before, during and after events in the Dáil and Seanad – and propose a positive alternative. We must never give up on the cause of human dignity.

So we urge you to do all you can to make the National Vigil for Life on 8th June a big success. This Vigil comes at the key moment with the Government producing the actual legislation. 

We must demonstrate the massive number of pro-life people in Ireland. Early June is a critical time and we need you to do everything that you can – now.Please get involved by attending yourself and also bringing as many others as possible.

Bring a carload or a busload! 

To organise a bus from your area, please telephone Denise on (087) 266 8702, Theresa on (085) 871 1100 or Maria on (085) 883 4636

You can order leaflets instantly to spread among family and friends here

For information on updates like the National Vigil For Life Facebook page and follow @natvigil4life on Twitter

The Irish Family Planning Association offers a "comprehensive range of services" even ones detrimental to women's health.

Abortion campaigner uses taxpayer funds to endanger women's health!

It was revealed in this morning's Irish Independent that the Crisis Pregnancy Program which comes under the HSE is implicated in a scandal whereby women were offered advice that was dangerous and potentially illegal. It is astounding that an organization like the IFPA which is Ireland's leading pro-abortion organization to the extent it took the state to court receives taxpayer funds in order to advance its agenda. The money it receives is to provide non-directive counselling. Instead we see that the advice offered isn't just in contravention of those conditions it is dangerous and potentially illegal. It's time for our elected representatives and especially the Minister for Health, Dr Reilly to call for an investigation.
This story is due to the excellent investigative reporting of Gemma O'Doherty and the women who actually caught the IFPA people on tape.

Revealed: the abortion advice that could put lives at risk.

   
STAFF at some taxpayer-funded pregnancy counselling services are putting women's lives at risk and breaking the law, an undercover probe has revealed.Some of the advice they gave about abortion was illegal, according to a leading lawyer, and some was medically dangerous, a top doctor says.In several instances, women were told to hide their abortions from their doctors, a course of action that could endanger life if post-surgery abortion complications remain undiagnosed.

Read more here.

Also in today's Irish Independent medical and legal experts have their say on this story.

Shocking breach of good medical practice, says Rotunda chief

A LEADING obstetrician has warned that advice given by some taxpayer-funded pregnancy-counselling services is putting women's lives in danger.
Sam Coulter Smith, clinical professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the Royal College of Surgeons, said he was "shocked and very disappointed" to learn that Irish women who travel to Britain for abortions are being told they should hide this from their doctors.
The findings, which emerged as part of an undercover investigation into crisis-pregnancy counselling services, are now the subject of an HSE probe.

More about that here.
Considering the fact that the Minister for Health thinks that the former head of the IFPA is an appropriate person to head the HSE the question must be asked, is the HSE the appropriate body to investigate this scandal?

500, no, 5,000, no, 2,500, no 2,000 ...

I was going to blog about the March for abortion choice which goes under the rather disingenuous title March for Choice (variously #march4choice and #marchforchoice on Twitter), I mean what choice are they talking about? Boxers or briefs, paper or plastic? No they want the choice to kill human persons. Anyway I could go on about that but as I said I was going to blog about the march but the story of the day wasn't the march itself or the rather predictable speeches (the capitalist bishops want to control your fertility and ignore the bank bailout - Clare Wallace neé Daly, late of the Socialist Party) but the numbers fiasco.
I'd link to the story in the Irish Times, posted almost two hours after the conclusion of the march, that mentioned how the turnout was dismal, around 500 only it changed later that night. Between 6PM and about 11 Twitter was alive with people encouraging pro abortion choice advocates to contact the Irish Times, eventually the paper of Ricard relented and changed to a rather vague report of thousands turning up.
Anyway, the fiasco is captured pretty comprehensibly here in this new blog.   The Quicker goes the journalist the slower go his thoughts.

PLC says National Women’s Council of Ireland no longer a “mainstream representative group for Irish women”

The National Women's Council of Ireland (NWCI) is the representative organisation for some women and certain women's groups in Ireland. They now support abortion at all stages. They can no longer claim to represent all women or all women's organizations. Last year they attacked Women Hurt for having the temerity to speak out about their own experiences of abortion. Now they're giving comfort to the most extreme element in the pro abortion movement in Ireland. I really hope that some of their member organizations let them know that they do not speak for them.

PLC says National Women’s Council of Ireland no longer a “mainstream representative group for Irish women”

27th September 2012

Speaking in response to a statement issued today by the National Women's Council of Ireland calling for abortion legislation, Dr. Ruth Cullen, Education Spokesperson of the Pro Life Campaign said;
"The NWCI can no longer call themselves a mainstream representative group for Irish women. Only last year the NWCI launched a scathing attack on Women Hurt,  for simply launching a billboard campaign drawing attention to abortion regret and the stories of women seeking hope and healing after abortion.
In citing public support for abortion today, it is interesting to note that the NWCI quoted a recent poll which made no distinction between necessary medical interventions in pregnancy and induced abortion which targets the life of the baby. Polls that do not make this ethical distinction are meaningless in the current abortion debate."

The same statement with some additional comment can be found here. 

Sunday Times Poll

A poll appeared in yesterday's Sunday Times. It appears to say something like 80% of Irish people want abortion introduced. Of course as usual you get the response you want when you ask the right question. The question itself was flawed, it asked if people would approve of abortion in the case where a woman's life is at risk. As I've blogged before Ireland is a very safe place for women to give birth. Our constitution recognizes that pregnant women have a right to medical care, that they have an equal right to life with their unborn child. In a case where medical attention would heal the mother but have the unintended side effect of harming the baby's the mother always gets the care she wants.
In a statement the Pro Life Campaign's Dr Ruth Cullen puts it very clear:

This poll is fundamentally flawed and adds nothing to the debate because it fails to make the crucial distinction between necessary medical interventions in pregnancy to save the mother and induced abortion which targets the life of the unborn baby.

The unborn is a human being and worthy of protection

Fintan O'Toole is fairly typical of a class of person that exists in Ireland today. Opinionated, vocal, bitter against the Church, contrarian and most of all pseudo intellectual. He had an article, an opinion piece in last Tuesday's Irish Times. The actual article was laced with inaccuracies and fallacies. William Binchy, legal adviser to the Pro Life Campaign wrote an excellent rebuttal piece for the Irish Times. Among other points he says:

Using emotive language, he identifies the implications of recognising the equal worth and dignity of every human being: “Over the last decade, the equivalent of the entire population of Limerick city has been murdered. ... Of course, the premise which he is inviting the reader to accept is that the termination of the lives of unborn children should not be the source of serious concern because unborn children, on account of their immaturity, are less worthy of respect and protection. ... Yet the central human rights value – the equal worth and dignity of every human being – is rejected by Fintan’s analysis. Human beings in the early stages of their life, when they are at risk of abortion on a “right to choose” test, are in his eyes not human beings “in exactly the same sense” as Mandela.

I would like to reproduce the entire article here but newspapers are funny about that kind of thing so the original article can be accessed via this link.  I think Professor Binchy does a very good job at demolishing not just O'Toole's article but the entire pro abortion argument. He attacks it from first principle, that is to say, he makes us ask what is a human being and is it ever acceptable to kill one just because they are at an early stage of development. If we believe the unborn is a human person then they deserve to be protected as much as Mandela or Lady Gaga. If they are not a human person then Fintan needs to be honest and tell us when, in his opinion does human personhood start. I'd like to see him answer that, he may go gaga pretty quickly himself.
It's also worth noting that on the same night as that article appeared Vincent chaired a debate on the Vincent Brown Tonight show on TV3 about the topic of abortion. His partisan article was not mentioned but it was pretty evident from his grandstanding and hostile tone towards Rónán Mullen and Caroline Simons what side he was on. Despite this Senator mullen and Caroline Simons did very very well. The TV debate can be accessed here.

Kulturkampf.

Kulturkampf
Late 19th century Europe was not a very pleasant place for Catholics. Political activism by Catholics was discouraged, clergy were persecuted and very often exiled. The Minister for mis-Communications Pat Rabbitte said that it would be a regressive step if the Church dictated policy to the government. Pat Rabitte would much prefer that Unions would dictate policy. Pat was a union official back in the day and was well able to do that himself. He was president of the Union of Students in Ireland and later became an official and eventually National Secretary in the Irish transport and General Workers Union. Presumably he didn't dictate to Labour Party or other Ministers during his tenure, maybe they discussed the progress of the Mayo football team? The very language he uses is inaccurate and inflammatory. He seeks to poison the well as it were. 
Whatever your opinion on the Church it is still the moral guide for the vast majority of Irish people. Religious practice in Ireland is still high compared to many countries, more people go to Mass on a regular basis than participate in the political process. Far more people are Catholic and look to the Church for moral guidance than have ever voted for the Labour Party. The fact that someone would seek to silence such a large organization, one that plays such a large part in civic society is profoundly undemocratic. 
The Pro-Life Campaign weighed in fairly early, it's statement is below. 

Pro Life Campaign criticises Minister Rabbitte for attempting to suppress voices in abortion debate

27th  August 2012

The Pro Life Campaign has criticised the Minister for Communications, Pat Rabbitte over his remarks on RTÉ radio yesterday when he said he didn't welcome plans by the Catholic Church to play an active role in the abortion debate.
Cardinal Brady, the leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland said at the weekend that the Catholic Church would get involved in the abortion debate should the Government attempt to introduce abortion in the coming months.  In response Minister Rabbitte said ‘I would hope we’re not going to see a situation where one church decides to weigh into the campaign in the political sense.’
Commenting on Minister Rabbitte's remarks, Pro Life Campaign spokesperson Cora Sherlock said:
“No church, faith-based group or any group should be intimidated out of the public arena when it comes to commenting on public policy, particularly on an issue as fundamental as the right to life. I would have thought it was partly the role of any Minister for Communications to encourage public discourse on important issues not try to suppress it.”
Ms Sherlock continued: “In the same interview, Minister Rabbitte also misleadingly implied that women were currently being denied necessary medical treatments because of the absence of abortion here.  This is a total misrepresentation of the facts. Ireland, without abortion, is a recognised world leader in safeguarding the lives of women in pregnancy.”

Well said Ms Sherlock. This was covered in today's Irish Times with some reactions from less hostile politicians.

Irish abortion regime must be resisted

 Irish abortion regime must be resisted

As the rather pathetic summer turns into autumn we have to keep our eye on one of those issues where there is a "consensus" among the left wing politicians and some of the hacks in our newspapers on one hand and the majority of the population on the other. The indubitable Cora Sherlock, chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign has her say in The Examiner.

Irish abortion regime must be resisted

By Cora Sherlock

Thursday, August 23, 2012

The introduction of abortion has far-reaching effects. Everyone should be free to voice an opinion, says Cora Sherlock
WE’VE come to expect a certain level of divisiveness in the abortion debate. It’s an emotive subject simply because it concerns the most fundamental right of all — the right to life. 

Ironically, many call for a calm debate one minute, and then revert to accusations of cowardice the next. We saw this in action recently when a group of Fine Gael TDs indicated that they were not prepared to vote for abortion legislation. 

But why should they, or anyone who opposes abortion, be accused of cowardice? Surely we’ve wrestled with this issue for long enough to have passed the stage of name-calling? The introduction of abortion to a society has far-reaching effects. As such, everyone living in that society should be free to voice an opinion without fear of being castigated, regardless of where they stand on the issue. 

Health Minister James Reilly’s comments and actions over the past few weeks mean it will not come as any great surprise if the expert group on abortion reports back in September with a limited list of options, all of which lead to the introduction of abortion, whether by legislation or regulation. However, if this happens it will be on the basis of a political decision and will have nothing to do with the requirements of either medicine or law. 

Women don’t die in Ireland because abortion is illegal here. We have a lower maternal mortality rate than countries such as the Netherlands or the UK, where abortion is legal. This fact is often dismissed by those who would like to see abortion introduced here, but their arguments ignore the fact that pregnant women in Irish hospitals already receive whatever treatment they need for an existing medical condition. The only difference is that doctors here have a duty of care towards the unborn child as he or she is recognised as a separate patient. The same cannot be said of the UK, for example, where abortion is legal up to 24 weeks and up to birth if the baby is suffering from even a minor disability. 

Earlier this year, The Daily Telegraph carried out an undercover investigation which revealed systematic abuses in a number of abortion clinics, including the illegal practice of sex-selective abortion. Babies are born alive during "botched abortions" in the UK — and then left to die. 

These facts are unpalatable, but it is incumbent on those who advocate the introduction of abortion to explain how we will be any different to countries such as the UK, which introduced abortion on supposedly "limited grounds" and subsequently found it impossible to restrict or control. Legally, there is no obligation on the Government to introduce abortion. The oft-quoted ABC European court decision merely obliged us to state our laws clearly; it did not state what those laws should be but recognised the right of the Irish people to decide this issue. 

If, as some have suggested, we legislate on the basis of the X Case, we would be ignoring the fact that the court in X heard no medical evidence. In making its decision, the court set no time limits. Legislation based on X means late-term abortions would be protected in law right up to birth. Since the X Case too, there has been a wealth of peer-reviewed evidence showing that abortion often has negative consequences on the woman involved — a fact exemplified by the testimonies of the women in groups like Women Hurt and this year’s HSE/Crisis Pregnancy Programme Study, which found a marked increase in the level of abortion regret since the last study carried out in 2003. An honest debate accepts that there are negative effects on many women. Their voices must not be drowned out. 

In its pre-election commitment to the Pro-Life Campaign, Fine Gael restated its opposition to the legalisation of abortion and research conducted on human embryos. It undertook to bring to the expert group a clear "commitment that women in pregnancy will receive whatever treatments are necessary to safeguard their lives and that the duty of care to preserve the life of the baby will also be upheld". 

This is the genuine pro-life, pro-woman position that is currently in practice in Irish hospitals and is consistently supported in independent opinion polls. A careful review of the facts has meant several governments have realised abortion is not necessary to safeguard women’s health. On the contrary, it may jeopardise their psychological wellbeing and end the life of a separate human being. 

Right now, Dr Reilly has primed the expert group to produce a list of options that would impose an abortion regime on Ireland. This is an affront to human dignity and the right to life and must be opposed.

 



* Cora Sherlock is deputy chairwoman of the Pro-Life Campaign

Without the right to life, all other rights are meaningless. 

Although I live west of the Shannon I don't make it to Mayo half as much as I should. Therefore I was slightly amused to find a letter that was originally published in the Connaught Telegraph on the  website for the US National Right to Life. I think it sums up perfectly the situation in Ireland right now, how Fine Gael, who are the majority party after all, need to stand up against the pro abortion bullies in the Labour Party.
Here is the letter as it appeared on the US website, complete with explanatory notes for the US readers.

Without the right to life, all other rights are meaningless

Editor’s note. The following letter to the editor was forwarded to the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, which reprinted it on its webpage. Mr. Ryan’s letter was sent to “The Connaught Telegraph.” [The “Fine Gael” is a political party in Ireland.]

Sir,
In a time when politicians get criticised for following the party line without question, I was very pleased that some members of Fine Gael stood up recently and said they were not going to accept abortion.
I’m referring to this month’s meeting of the Fine Gael parliamentary party when a number of Fine Gael representatives challenged the Minister for Health and vowed to vote against abortion legislation.
I was especially glad to see John O’Mahony [a member of the Fine Gael from Mayo] listed among those who spoke up on this issue.
Based on his defense of the unborn so far I would have no difficulty either voting for him or asking others to vote for him in a future election.
While it seems that Ireland remains an overwhelmingly pro-life country, according to consistent Millward Brown Lansdowne opinion polling, there does seem to be bias among the national media that favours legislating for abortion.
Over 79 per cent of people in Mayo want Fine Gael to keep their pre-election promise. That is considerably more than the 65 per cent that voted for Fine Gael in the last election.
In the same election the pro-abortion Labour party got less than five per cent of the vote. Clearly the people of Mayo support women who are pregnant and they want to see the law reflect this.
I was shocked to see that some member of the Labour party were critical of the Fine Gael [members of the lower house of Parliament] and senators. The fact that the Fine Gael party made a pro-life commitment to The Pro-Life Campaign prior to the general election is laudable and the fact the Fine Gael deputies feel that they should honour their promise is something Fine Gael should be proud of.
It continues to be a tragedy that Irish women travel for abortions and it’s a scandal that women do so because they do not feel they have adequate supports in Ireland.
I hope our politicians will continue to see the need to offer women more and better support services when they are faced with a crisis pregnancy.
Without the right to life, all other rights are meaningless. I congratulate the Fine Gael deputies on their stance and hope that the rest of the Fine Gael party follows suit.
Yours sincerely,

Tom Ryan, Castlebar. 

Abortion campaigner to head Ireland's health service. 

More on Tony O'Brien's appointment. A statement from the Pro Life Campaign via their Facebook page. The Independent describes O'Brien as one of Reilly's "key executives." Reilly is an intelligent man, he is a doctor after all. He is also a businessman, though he has been described as more of a businessman than a doctor. This worries me as the debt default issue would suggest that he is not much of a businessman either. The point I'm trying to make is that he is a terrible politician, he seems to have no idea ...

Pro Life Campaign says new HSE appointment sends the wrong message on abortion

27th July 2012

The Minister for Health James Reilly today appointed Mr Tony O’Brien as the new Director General of the HSE.  Mr O'Brien was previously the Chief Executive of the Irish Family Planning Association and a leading campaigner for abortion in Ireland.
Commenting on the Minister for Health’s latest appointment, Pro Life Campaign spokesperson, Cora Sherlock said:
“Ever since the Clare Daly Bill on abortion, Minister Reilly has been effectively relying on the speaking notes of the pro-abortion movement rather than defending Fine Gael’s pre-election pro-life commitments.
“Now he has appointed someone as Director General of the HSE who has spent most of his career campaigning for abortion on demand in Ireland. The political message sent by this appointment is unmistakable. Whether it’s the issue or the optics, clearly Minister Reilly doesn’t get it.
“Of more concern, however, to pro-life supporters is the manner in which the Expert Group process initiated by the Minister is descending into farce.
“Both Minister Reilly and Minister of State Kathleen Lynch have already made public statements pre-empting its findings and it will come as no surprise if it reports back with a narrow list of options all advocating abortion. If this happens, it will have nothing to do with women’s health or the right to life and everything to do with politics.”

Former head of IFPA to head Ireland's health service, well done minister Reilly, you get the prize for most cock ups this Summer. 

James Reilly believes that he doesn't have enough trouble on his plate. His recent appearance in Stubbs Gazette as a debt defaulter hasn't caused him enough grief, he has decided to appoint a former head of the largest organized campaigner for abortion in Ireland as head of the new health service.
As chief executive of the IFPA Mr Tony O'Brien was very critical of Ireland and her laws in this regard. Mr O'Reilly was very vocal more than ten years ago when the statistics showed that the number of Irish women seeking abortions in Britain was on the rise, responding to the release of statistics in 2000 he said: "... we are doing very little to seriously tackle the underlying issue of unplanned pregnancy."The numbers have declined over the last ten years, the IFPA have their own spin on that but it can't be explained by contraception, not when the birth rate is at a 118 year high and abortions are at a 30 year low.
Mr O'Brien has spent the last ten years working in the health services. He seems to have done very well there. I can't take his success from him. His appointment as head of the nation's health services is a strange move, this cannot be denied. The minister cannot claim that he was not aware of Mr O'Brien's résumé. Because of this Mr. O'Brien's appointment at this time, when abortion is being discussed with such heat his appointment for a three year period is extraordinary arrogant by O'Reilly. O'Reilly has made other decisions where he has been criticized for his arrogance but this one takes the biscuit. Considering some of the actions Mr O'Brien took and remarks that he made during his tenure as chief of the IFPA the only thing that can be said is that his appointment is thoroughly unsuitable at this time once you consider the issue that James Reilly has told us that he will legislate.
Thankfully some within Fine Gael have the courage to stand up to Reilly and I hope that others will develop the same but this appointment while it will give comfort to the Labour Party it will do nothing to boost support for Fine Gael. Having two Junior Ministers in your department, at least one of which feels slighted that the resignation of the head of the HSE wasn't made known to her before it was announced publicly, isn't working well for Reilly.
Of course there is one other possibility, that Reilly is just not up to the job.

Martin statement re abortion legislation "timely and welcome" say Pro Life Campaign

23rd July 2012

Fianna Fáil leader Michéal Martin's comments today, in which he said that legislation to allow abortion along the lines of the X case would effectively lead to abortion on demand "are timely and welcome", the Pro Life Campaign (PLC) have said.
In a statement, PLC spokesperson Dr Ruth Cullen said that Mr Martin's remarks "acknowledged the reality of what an Irish abortion regime would look like after legislation".
Dr Cullen said: "The past week has been heartening for those who still believe that when political parties make promises, they should stick by them.
"Last week we saw a significant number of Fine Gael TDs and Senators remind their party leadership of their election pledge to stand up for unborn human life. Today we saw Michéal Martin reaffirm his party's commitment to the same principle: that human life must be protected at all stages. Both developments were timely and welcome.
"At a time when Labour politicians are trying to bully the Government into believing the myth that the European court judgement in the  A,B and C v Ireland case obliges Ireland to legalise abortion, we welcome the clarity which both Mr Martin's comments, and the stance taken by backbench Fine Gael TDs, have brought to the debate.
"Mr Martin's statement, that legislation to provide for abortion along the lines of the X case would create "an open-door situation" which would be "very difficult to hold back" acknowledged the reality of what an Irish abortion regime would look like after legislation.
Dr Cullen also welcomed Mr Martin's acknowledgement that current Irish medical practice was about protecting both mother and child.
"Pro-abortion advocates and politicians have repeatedly attempted to obscure the fact that Ireland boasts world class medical care for pregnant women. In this context, Mr Martin's recognition that Irish doctors do everything they can "to preserve the life of the unborn and preserve the life of the mother" is very welcome.
"Ireland has consistently shown itself to be the safest place in the world to give birth in, and international statistics confirm this."

Opinion poll shows overwhelming support for Ireland's pro-life laws. 

It's been a while since I've seen an opinion poll on abortion that was conducted by a polling agency and not conducted online or by phone in. The recent poll conducted by Millward Brown Lansdowne for the Pro Life Campaign turned up some interesting results. 
When people understand that the law as it stands in Ireland ensures that mothers get all medical attention that they need while doctors also strive to preserve the life of their unborn child they are more likely to support the status quo.

Thursday 21st June 2012

Public wants Fine Gael to honour its pro-life commitments

Pro Life Campaign calls on Minister for Health to clarify Fine Gael’s stance on abortion following Dáil speech

The Pro Life Campaign today released the latest Millward Brown Lansdowne polling research on life issues which shows strong public backing for the pro-life commitments made by Fine Gael prior to the general election in 2011. The research also reveals significant public support for current medical practice in Ireland where there is a duty of care towards the baby when intervening in pregnancy to save the mother’s life.
The research was carried out on a quota controlled sample of 979 people aged 18+ between 2nd – 15th May 2012.
The first question reads:
Just prior to polling day in the 2011 General Election, Fine Gael said it was opposed to the legalisation of abortion and experimentation on human embryos. It said that Fine Gael’s representatives would bring to the proposed all-party committee a clear commitment that women in pregnancy will receive whatever treatments are necessary to safeguard their lives, and the duty of care to preserve the life of the baby will also be upheld.  Would you agree or disagree with this commitment?
Overall, of those who expressed an opinion, 80% agreed with the commitment and 20% disagreed.  In Connacht/Ulster which includes the Taoiseach’s constituency of Mayo, 87% agreed and only 13% disagreed.
The second question was worded as follows:
Current medical practice in Ireland does not allow the deliberate killing of the unborn baby.  In a crisis pregnancy situation, the doctor has a duty of care towards the baby when intervening to save the mother’s life.  Do you consider that this ethical practice should be protected by law?
78% of those who expressed an opinion said it should and 22% disagreed.  There was majority support in all ages, social classes and regions.
Commenting on the poll findings, Dr Berry Kiely of the Pro Life Campaign said: “When the ethical distinction between induced abortion and necessary medical interventions in pregnancy is clarified in polling questions, the true strength of public opposition to abortion is revealed. The latest poll findings bear this out and are immensely reassuring from a pro-life perspective.”
Referring to the speech by Minister for Health, James Reilly in the Dáil during the recent Private Members’ Bill on abortion, Dr Kiely said,  “The Minister for Health’s speech alarmed pro-life supporters and he has a responsibility to clarify his position and that of Fine Gael”.
In his speech Minister Reilly said that the previous six governments had failed to legislate for the X Case decision but that the present Government “will not be the seventh.”
In response to this, Dr Kiely said, “It is clear from the Minister’s remarks that he does not expect the “Expert Group” on abortion to list as one of its options ways of complying with the European Court of Human Rights decision in A, B and C v. Ireland, that afford legal protection to both mother and baby in pregnancy. This completely undermines Fine Gael’s solemn pre-election commitment opposing abortion legislation and pledging that “women in pregnancy will receive whatever treatments are necessary to safeguard their lives and the duty of care to preserve the life of the baby will also be upheld.
“Legislation based on the X Case would amount to abortion on demand as the judges heard no medical evidence and set no time limits for when an abortion could take place. In addition the recent European court decision in A, B and C v. Ireland does not oblige us to introduce an abortion regime.
“Instead of repeating pro-abortion claims, the Minister for Health needs to acknowledge that Ireland, without abortion, is the safest country in the world for pregnant women as recognised by the UN and World Health Organisation. The Minister also needs to clarify Fine Gael’s stance on abortion in light of his recent speech in the Dáil”, Dr Kiely concluded.

Number of Irish women seeking abortion in Britain declines for the tenth consecutive year. 

British health authorities have released their statistics for abortions over the last year and for the tenth consecutive year the number of women with Irish addresses has declined. The figures are back to where they were about 30 years ago.  Some people, like the IFPA, will like to claim credit for this, people are using contraception they say (yet our birth rate is at a 118 year high) so obviously something is off in their reasoning. But I suppose when your raison d'être is abortion and contraception you have to come out with some spin. They will also tell you that fewer and fewer Irish women give Irish addresses because of a variety of reasons. Again no evidence to support this, and indeed it calls into question the method the British use to compile their statistics. Highly original. 
Anyway this is good news. 
One of the main arguments for introducing abortion into Ireland is that Irish women will only go to Britain anyway. Not much of an argument but now that fewer Irish women feel the need to go to Britain does this mean we will hear less of that argument? One final note. Just because fewer women feel the need to have an abortion does not mean that we do not try to help them, change our culture and society to one that values mothers and their babies. 

 PLC welcomes fall in abortion rates for tenth consecutive year.   While abortion rates fall, rate of women regretting abortions rise

29th May 2012

The Pro Life Campaign has welcomed the latest Irish abortion figures released today by the British Department of Health,* which show that the number of Irish women travelling to Britain for abortions has decreased for the tenth consecutive year.

In 2011, 4,149 Irish women travelled to Britain for abortions, down from 4,402 in 2010 and 4,422 in 2009.  The 2011 figures show a marked decrease over previous years.  2011 is the tenth consecutive year that Irish abortions have declined and represents a 38% decline since the high of 6,673 Irish abortions in 2001.

The release of these figures follows the recent report ** from the HSE/Crisis Pregnancy Programme showing an increase in the number of women expressing abortion regret.  In that study, 44 per cent of women expressed varying degrees of regret about their abortions up from 33 per cent in a similar HSE study in 2003.

In a statement welcoming the continuing reduction in the number of Irish women travelling to Britain for abortion, Cora Sherlock of the Pro Life Campaign said:

“While it is too early to draw firm conclusions, the fact that the abortion figures are decreasing while the number of women expressing regret after abortion is increasing, shows the need for a much closer examination of women’s experiences of abortion, including abortion regret."

She said: “There has been a refusal on the part of those campaigning for abortion in Ireland to take on board the research indicating the negative consequences of abortion for women. This does a tremendous disservice to women. The claims by some groups that the reduced figures can be explained by the fact that women are travelling to other countries is not backed by the evidence."

 *Summary Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2011 (29/05/12)
 ** Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy Study 2010 (ICCP 2010), published in May 2012 (HSE/CPP 

RTÉ, biased? 

You need a license to if you want to own a dog, you need one if you want to own a gun, you need one before you can drive a car. Presumably this is because in each case a certain amount of care and responsibility is needed. Dogs can savage people so someone needs to be responsible for them. Even if there is little chance of that then Rex needs to be cared for, you can't just let him roam around trying to care for himself. It's more obvious when it comes to guns, they are lethal weapons. Not just anyone can be allowed on our roads, you need to be able to drive, know the rules and abide by them. If you don't then the potential for doing great harm is great.
This makes the law over having to own a television license even more curious. What is it about RTÉ that is so lethal that watching it requires us to own a license? If you want to watch television in Ireland you need to pay €160 a year to RTÉ, the national broadcaster in what is known as a television license. This supplements their advertizing revenue. Now, with this huge income relative to the size of their market what have they produced in recent years that is worth speaking of?
I couldn't think of anything either. Even current affairs which has often been cited as something they are proud of has been shown up recently as being rotten. The Fr. Kevin Reynolds case still hasn't been sorted.
There is no doubt in my mind that there is real bias in RTÉ when it comes to the issue of abortion. Recent events have only shown this to be the case. The Late Late show of a couple of weeks past is one blatant example.
Now people always claim media bias, especially when that bias is against them but in case anyone is ready to accuse me of making this up I want to draw your attention to a campaign that recently brought the issue to the nation. There was a full page add in the Irish Independent today drawing attention to RTÉ's bias and outlining concrete examples. There is a website associated with the add, hearbothsides.org It's very good, I'd recomend that you check it out.

Reggie Littlejohn to speak tomorrow at the Gresham. 

Reggie Littlejohn of www.Womensrightswithoutfrontiers.org will be speaking about her work on Tuesday, 24th April at 7pm in the O' Casey Room, Gresham Hotel, O' Connell Street, Dublin 1. Places are limited so if you would like to attend, please email mail@prolifecampaign.ie or telephone 086 2195317 with your details.

Over several years, she has testified before the US Congressional Human Rights Commission, briefed the White House, the European Parliament, the British Parliament and others on this issue.   As a lawyer she has represented Chinese refugees in political asylum cases in the United States. The meeting is hosted by the Pro Life Campaign.

Are pregnant women denied medical treatment in Ireland?

To hear Clare Daly and her colleagues speak you'd think that women were being denied life saving medical treatment on a regular basis. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth. The constitution is very clear, mothers and their unborn children have equal right to life and women cannot be denied treatment. To say otherwise is to cast aspersions on medical and legal professionals  throughout the country. Despite the many problems in our health services all people are agreement that once a person is in the system they get excellent care. Our nurses and doctors are among the best in the world and they do everything possible to care for mothers and their unborn babies.

Pro Life Campaign accuses sponsors of Private Members' Bill of misrepresenting facts in the abortion debate

The Private Members’ Bill backing abortion introduced in the Dáil today by Socialist Party TD Clare Daly “falsely creates the impression that women in Ireland are being denied necessary medical treatments in pregnancy because of the absence of abortion here”, Dr Ruth Cullen of the Pro Life Campaign said.
Dr Cullen continued, “The reality is, however, that Ireland ranks as one of the safest countries in the world for pregnant women, safer than places like Britain or Holland where abortion is available on demand.
“The X Case decision, which Ms Daly proposes legislating for, heard no medical evidence and set no time limits for when an abortion could take place. So rather than being restrictive as claimed by its proponents, any legislation based on the X decision would amount to abortion on demand, with no regard for the humanity of the unborn child or the severe negative psychological after effects of abortion for many women. To ignore this reality in the name of “choice” does a grave disservice to women and their unborn children”.

Daly abortion bill defeated.

There was a time when socialists really had a claim to defending the poor and vulnerable in society, not so any longer.
 This past week we saw the hard left wing members of the Dáil unite to sponsor and vote for a bill that would have significantly relaxed Ireland's abortion law. It was defeated by the government parties but not before some members of the Labour Party expressed their personal pro abortion position. Extraordinarily Anne Ferris TD (Labour) stood up and proclaimed that though a Catholic she favoured abortion services being available in Ireland.
Gerry Adams TD said that he did not favour abortion but wouldn't like to criminalise women who had abortions. Weasel words to be sure and I won't even make any jokes about Sinn Féin and their treatment of women.

Pro Life Campaign accuses sponsors of Dáil abortion motion of wilfully ignoring the negative effects of abortion for women

Responding to news that a number of TDs are to table a Private Members motion in the Dáil calling for legislation on abortion, Dr Ruth Cullen of the Pro Life Campaign said:
Those tabling the Dáil motion have chosen to wilfully ignore all the peer reviewed psychological evidence in the intervening years since the X Case highlighting the adverse effects of abortion for women. They also seem determined to gloss over the fact that Ireland without abortion is a safer country for pregnant women than places like England and Holland where abortion is available on demand right up to birth.
There is nothing liberal or progressive about proposing to take away the most basic right of all, namely the right to life. In fact it does a tremendous disservice to women and their unborn children to ignore the basic facts of what abortion entails for both the mother and her baby.

Pro Life Stereotype.
All pro lifers are religious nutters, old men who tell women what to do with their bodies ...
Err, no actually. Take a look at some of the faces in this protest outside the Dáil the other day. Young, articulate (and can I say as a man, very attractive) women who know that abortion is a bad thing, that it hurts women and destroys lives. Photos are via the Pro Life Campaign website. 
The photocall 

Here with some women from womenhurt.ie who know first hand how abortion harms women.

Caroline Simons Pro Life Campaign Spokesperson talking to RTÉ

 

The Labour Party and their pro abortion stance. 

Last weekend the Labour Party held their annual conference in Galway. There was a huge hullabaloo over the household charge and other taxes. There were people there expressing their feelings about the minor party of government deciding to go Frankfurt's way after all. Among the other dross at the conference was a motion that set out clearly Labour's feelings about abortion. Some of their candidates were very tetchy before the last general election when the issue was brought up. Some went as far as to start name calling and screaming hysterical calumnies against pro life advocates.
I wonder if many of their decent members are truly in favour of abortion or if they accept it as part of the socialist package. It certainly seems the case that a wannabe socialist party like Sinn Féin are not pro abortion out of conviction but because it's part of the socialist package. Certainly most of the voters in Donegal North East and South West are not pro abortion, quite the opposite. The same goes for many working class Labour voters. Their urban middle class elite (from which most of their TDs and senators are drawn) are another matter.

16th April 2012

Pro Life Campaign says Labour Party abortion stance 'ignores hurt abortion causes women.

A motion passed at yesterday’s Labour Party conference in favour of abortion legislation has been described by the Pro Life Campaign (PLC) as “ignoring the hurt that abortion causes women”.
In a statement, PLC spokesperson, Dr Ruth Cullen said that those who spoke in favour of the motion had “tried to imply that legislation would safeguard women’s lives”.
“In fact, the motion was about seeking abortion on demand,” Dr Cullen said.
She added: “Those who supported the motion should know that Ireland, without abortion, is the safest country for pregnant women and that there is a clear distinction between necessary medical treatment in pregnancy and direct abortion, the aim of which is to end the baby’s life.
“Repeatedly, figures from the United Nations on maternal mortality show that Ireland is a world leader in this area. Yet instead of celebrating this achievement, pro-abortion campaigners repeatedly distort the facts.
“The adoption of the motion also shows that the Labour Party is ignoring the hurt that abortion causes women.
“Increasingly, research is showing that abortion is a leading risk factor for increased mental health problems for women.
“Despite this, Labour has assumed an outdated position that refuses to take on board this evidence, or the stories that many women are telling about the trauma that abortion has caused them.”
Dr Cullen added: “There is nothing progressive about adopting a policy that disregards the right to life and ignores the negative effects of abortion on women.
“This latest evidence of Labour’s aggressive stance in favour of abortion makes it all the more imperative that voters hold Fine Gael to their election promise to retain Ireland’s pro-life stance.”