Ireland Activists Continue Legal Campaign to Legalize Abortion There

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Dec 13, 2005   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

Ireland Activists Continue Legal Campaign to Legalize Abortion There Email this article
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
December 13, 2005

Dublin, Ireland (LifeNews.com) — Seventeen abortion advocates led a protest outside the Dail in Ireland to call for the legalization of abortion there. The protest comes as a leading pro-abortion group is continuing its lawsuit seeking to overturn the nation’s pro-life laws.

The activists imprisoned themselves in a cage outside the government building in an effort to draw attention to the 17 Irish women they claim travel to Britain daily for abortions.

The young activists are a part of a new group called BODY that is pressing for a national referendum on abortion.

Previously, the Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA) took a lawsuit to the European Court of Human Rights, a part of the Council of Europe that deals with issues of democracy and human rights. A decision on the case is not expected until 2006.

They want the removal of article 40.3.3 of the Irish constitution, which equates the life of the unborn to that of the pregnant woman.

Pro-Life Campaign spokeswoman Audrey Dillon said IFPA and the lawsuit ignore the humanity of the unborn child and the damage abortion does to women.

"Every society has to confront the reality of crisis pregnancy," Dillon said. "The challenge is to create a more welcoming society for expectant mothers and their unborn children by providing positive alternatives to abortion."

Polls show citizens of Ireland don’t want legalized abortion.

A September Irish Examiner/Lansdowne survey reveals that 47 percent would vote against a referendum legalizing abortion while just 36 percent would vote for it.