The Loss of Even One Baby's Life is an Immense Tragedy, says PLC

The PLC was commenting on figures released today by Health Minister Leo Varadkar showing that 26 abortions took place in 2014 under Ireland’s new abortion law, saying that the loss of even one child’s life from abortion is an immense human tragedy. 
Commenting on the release of the figures, PLC Deputy Chairperson, Cora Sherlock said: “The Government and Minister Varadkar are fully aware that abortion is not a treatment for suicidal feelings. Yet they pressed ahead with legislation in 2013 providing for abortion on this ground, ignoring the expert evidence from two sets of Oireachtas hearings which showed that, far from being a medical treatment, abortion in the case of threatened suicide can have long term negative consequences for women. The loss of even one baby’s life from abortion is an immense tragedy. It is a very sad fact that the Government’s legislation in 2013 is directly responsible for the loss of life in the cases where three babies had their lives ended under the ‘threat of suicide’ ground for abortion."
 “It is difficult to determine from the information made available today whether the deaths of the other 23 babies under the new Act resulted from induced abortion that directly targeted their lives or whether some or all of them resulted from necessary medical interventions in pregnancy to save the life of the mother where every reasonable effort was also made to save the life of the unborn child.”

Ms Sherlock continued:  “Under the new legislation the Government deliberately blurred the distinction between necessary medical interventions and induced abortion. But what is not at issue is that three babies under the new abortion Act had their lived ended without a shred of medical evidence to suggest abortion on this ground would safeguard the life of the mother. Pro-life groups never claimed that the new law would lead to abortion on demand overnight. We stand by the claim we made in 2013 that over time the new law, unless it is repealed, will normalize the practice of abortion in Ireland and undermine the dignity and inherent value of every human life.”

UN Commitee Deeply Hypocritical on Abortion

The Pro Life Campaign has described the recent UN hearings on abortion in Geneva as the latest chapter in an ongoing charade perpetrated by a Committee that is deeply hypocritical when it comes to abortion.

Deputy Chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign, Cora Sherlock commented on the Report which issued from the UN’s Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, saying:

“The Report highlights the importance of fighting discrimination, recommending that the State adopt “comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation” before then going on to advocate the further liberalisation of Ireland’s abortion laws. As the Committee members will be aware, abortion is the ultimate discrimination, targeting the right to life of the unborn, the most vulnerable in our society.

“In a similar vein, the Committee recommends a series of measures to benefit the disabled but it ignores the fact that in countries like the UK, abortion is available right up to birth where a baby is diagnosed with a disability. The Committee cannot continue to ignore these inconsistencies and expect its credibility to remain unchallenged.”

She continued:

“There is no “right to abortion” in international human rights law, a fact which has been conveniently ignored by the members of this Committee. There is, however, a “right to life” which is clearly set out in Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The UN should ensure that all of its Committee members adhere to the founding principles of this Declaration, and do not advocate measures which would impact negatively on the right to life of any human being, particularly the most vulnerable in society.”

More here

Court Date Set after a Dublin Woman Dies after an Abortion

The Pro Life Campaign has criticised today the continuing refusal of the Government to comment on the latest scandal where a woman from Dublin bled to death following an abortion in a Marie Stopes clinic in London in 2012.

Commenting on the news that a court date of July 3rd has been fixed for the doctor and two nurses charged with manslaughter in the case, Cora Sherlock, Deputy Chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign, said:

“The continued silence from various members of the Government is very revealing about how the issue of abortion is dealt with in this country.  There has been no attempt whatsoever to address the fact that this unfortunate woman lost her life as a direct result of the treatment she received when undergoing an abortion. It seems that the loss of this woman’s life doesn’t merit attention simply because it doesn’t suit the agenda of abortion advocates.”

“Even though more of the facts of this case have now become available, there has still been no reaction from those members of the Government who are most vocal when it comes to attempts to further liberalise Ireland’s abortion laws.  Where is their outrage for the welfare of this woman, who fell prey to the falsehood of a “safe, legal abortion”? The Government ignoring this woman’s death is absolutely shameful.”

Read more here

Note: The doctor and two nurses charged with manslaughter, Dr. Adedayo Adedeji, Gemma Pullen and Margaret Miller will now go forward for trial at London’s Old Bailey on July 3rd

Deputy Mattie McGrath's Private Member's Bill Welcomed by PLC

The Pro Life Campaign has expressed its support for the latest effort by Independent TD Mattie McGrath, obliging medical professionals to desist from using the term ‘incompatible with life’ when referring to unborn babies with potentially life-limiting conditions.

Speaking in the Dáil yesterday during the introduction of his Private Members’ Bill on the issue (Disability Amendment Bill 2015), Mr McGrath said: “Like many phrases that may once have been prevalent in our society, for example terms like illegitimate or retard, the phrase 'incompatible with life' must be eliminated from our public discourse”.

Commenting on Deputy McGrath’s Bill, Cora Sherlock, Deputy Chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign said: “There is a responsibility on everyone who contributes to the abortion debate to behave in a way that doesn’t cause offence or hurt to families or individuals who may be feeling particularly vulnerable. In recent debates, some politicians have used obscene and highly offensive language to describe unborn babies with life-limiting conditions. There is nothing anyone can do about that other than appeal to these politicians to be more mindful of the sensitivities involved and how much hurt and anguish their ill-considered comments cause families of babies with terminal illnesses.”

To read more, click here

Fundamental Flaws in Legislation Demonstrated in Leinster Hospital Abortion Case

The Pro Life Campaign has said today that the case of an abortion carried out in a Leinster hospital which has reportedly raised staff concerns about the certification process by the health professionals involved is not surprising. 

Commenting on the case, in which an abortion was carried out under the terms of the 2013 legislation last October, Cora Sherlock, the Deputy Chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign said:

“The 2013 law permits abortion up until birth on a threat of suicide without any medical evidence to back it up.  The law simply requires two psychiatrists to sign off to pave the way for an unborn child’s life to be ended.”

“When the abortion law was being debated the Pro Life Campaign and others predicted that it was dangerously open to abuse and the case reported today appears to substantiate those concerns.”

Responding to the fact that the HSE does not intend to investigate if there has been any breach of procedure in this particular case she said:

“While we cannot comment on individual cases, it goes without saying that every situation where an unborn child’s life is taken, whether or not within the confines of the unjust abortion law of 2013, should be thoroughly investigated.”

“The idea of the HSE deciding not to investigate when legitimate concerns have been raised by its own staff about the ceritification procedure is disturbing and simply not acceptable. An independent investigation into this tragedy must take place without delay”, Cora Sherlock concluded.

To read more articles like this, click here

Amnesty International Has Abandoned Those Most In Need Of Human Rights Protection Says PLC

“Amnesty has become a de facto campaigning group for abortion and can no longer act as an unbiased and impartial defender of human rights” -Sherlock

Watch the new video about Amnesty’s focus on abortion above genuine human rights abuses above

To read more about this topic, click here

"Where is the Political Outrage over Death of Woman from Ireland after Abortion in Marie Stopes Clinic?"

Deputy Chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign asks "where is the plitical outrage over the death of a woman from Ireland after she had an abortion in a Marie Stopes Clinic in London?"  as the silence of Government politicians over latest case highlights the colossal double standard in the abortion debate.

The Pro Life Campaign has accused members of the Government of “selective outrage” on the issue of abortion. It follows news that a doctor and two nurses in England have been charged with manslaughter after a woman from Ireland bled to death in the back of a London taxi within hours of undergoing an abortion at a Marie Stopes clinic in Ealing, London.

Commenting on the tragic case,  Ms Sherlock said: “It’s very revealing the way members of the Government have fallen silent over this latest Marie Stopes scandal. It lays bare the colossal double standards at the heart of the abortion debate in Ireland.

“The tragic death of Savita Halappanavar was misused, massively and continuously by certain politicians and journalists to get abortion legislation over the line in 2013. There was little or no regard at the time for the facts of that particular case which showed the real cause of the tragedy in Galway was mismanaged sepsis, not the non-availability of abortion in Ireland at the time.

To read more, click here

BIRTHRIGHT

Read the most recent Pro Life Campaign Birthright here or download from here.
You can download this document here.

US based Centre for Reproductive Rights intervenes in Irish abortion case.

Last night RTÉ's Prime Time program ran a piece on how the New York based Center for Reproductive Rights is backing a campaign to broaden Ireland's abortion law. The Center for Reproductive Rights is well known for campaigning for abortion without any restrictions. They regularly take cases against laws that try to make late term abortion more restrictive. They've also opposed laws that try to prohibit partial birth abortion and abortions based on sex or race of the unborn baby.
Clíona Johnson of One Day More spoke of her experience in deciding to have her baby after getting a fatal diagnosis for her son, John Paul. Rather than just change the law and make abortion more available she called for a more compassionate society that cares for mothers and their babies when confronted with this situation.

 Cora Sherlock, deputy chairperson of the Pro Life Campaign also appeared on the program. Among many very well made points she expressed concern that a well funded international group like the Center for Reproductive Rights has decided to interfere in the Irish abortion debate.

You can watch the full section on RTÉ player by following this link.

PLC calls for assurances that the HIQA report recommendations will be implemented

Following the first anniversary of the death of Savita Halappanavar, the Pro Life campaign have urged the Government to provide assurances that the recommendations from the HIQA report carried out following Savita’s death would be implemented.

PLC spokesperson Dr Ruth Cullen said:

The HIQA report found a catalogue of failures in the care of Savita Halapanavar and was disturbingly similar to the findings of a HSE inquiry into the death of Tania McCabe in 2007 – a death which also resulted from a missed sepsis diagnosis and medical mismanagement. Despite seven years having passed since Tania McCabe’s death, the recommendations from the report after her death had not been implemented nationally. Had these recommendations been implemented the tragedy in Galway may not have happened.

More here.

Abortion Steals our Future.

Please take a minute to watch this new video by the Pro Life Campaign and which was premiered at yesterday's National Conference. The conference itself was a great success and was the best attended ever.

Pro Life campaign National Conference.

Register to attend the Pro Life Campaign National Conference on 12th October and get involved in the movement to protect mothers and babies. 

Register online here.

Pro Life Campaign 'will now devote its energies to the repeal of unjust law' as President signs abortion bill into law

The Pro Life Campaign has said the passage into law today of the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill “is a very sad day for our country” and “for the first time in our history makes it legal to deliberately target the life of an innocent human being.”

Caroline Simons of the Pro Life Campaign said: “Despite what the Taoiseach and others claim, the new law is life-ending, not life-saving. The Government brought forward this law in the full knowledge that abortion is not a treatment for suicidal feelings and ignored all the peer-reviewed evidence showing that abortion has adverse mental health consequences for women.

“This is a very sad day for our country. For the first time in our history, it is now legal to deliberately target the life of an innocent human being. The Pro Life Campaign will now devote its energies to the repeal of this unjust law. We will give very careful consideration in the coming weeks to the best way to bring this about.

“The pro-life movement is mobilised and growing. We have seen the biggest ever gatherings of pro-life people in recent weeks. The passage of this bill into law marks a new beginning not an end for pro-life activism. Fine Gael has broken its solemn pre-election commitment not to introduce abortion legislation. This will most definitely be remembered at the next election.”

National Vigil for Life a great success.

The National Vigil for Life held yesterday was a great success with an estimated 40,000 people who turned out in Merrion Square to voice their opposition to the proposed government bill. For a more detailed statement from the Pro Life Campaign and more photos click here.

Vigil For Life 2012

Thousands of people from all over the country converged on the streets outside Leinster House in a hastily organized vigil to show politicians that there are many people in Ireland that want our laws that protect the equal right to life of mother and child to remain in place.
After the tragic death of Savita Halappanavar last October there was tremendous pressure to change Irish law to allow for abortion. The tragedy, which happened here in our own city, became the focus of international attention. The appropriate thing at this stage is to wait until the investigation is over before we can say with authority what happened but it is equally clear that before the story became known to the public that pro-abortion choice advocates were ready to use it to attack Ireland's laws that guarantee the equal right to life of mother and unborn baby. The "spontaneous" protests outside the Dáil that called for the liberalization of the law weren't spontaneous after all. 
The vigil for Life was organized with about a week's notice and brought at a minimum of 5,000 to the protest. Other estimates were given of up to twice that. The 5,000 figure was given by the Irish Times but considering the fact that the same paper gave in to pressure to revise upwards the numbers at a pro-abortion march several months back their figures must be taken with caution. No doubt several more thousands were there according to their own standards. 

 Galway flag outside the Dáil at the Vigil for Life

At least two buses from Galway went to the vigil which exceeded all expectations.  There was no trouble from pro-abortion activists despite some threats that were noted on social networking websites earlier in the week. The weather was very good, though earlier in the week it was cold and damp there was no rain on the day and the mood was good thorough. Some singing broke out in different pockets as the assembled crowd waited for the vigil to start. Many people held candles while others held placards calling on politicians to value mother and child equally and asking the Taoiseach, Enda Kenny to keep the promise he made before the general election last year that Fine Gael in government would not legislate for abortion. 

 A section of the crowd with candles and placards.

The festive spirit that could be felt was lifted by the speakers. Caroline Simons, legal consultant to the Pro-Life Campaign told the crowd that despite the impression that was given Ireland is under no obligation by the European Court of Human Rights to legislate for abortion:

All we are supposed to do is clarify our own position in relation to abortion here…We have one of the best maternal mortality rates in the world so abortion is never the answer. It is not going to save mothers lives and we don’t want to see it on our shores.

 Niamh Uí Bhriain of the Life Institute told the vigil that "we need to ensure that both our mothers and babies are best protected by banning abortion." She also called on Enda Kenny to keep the promise he made before the general election.
Dr Sean O’Domhnaill of the Life Institute was abother speaker as was Cliona Johnson who told her moving story of her John Paul, her son, who was born with anencephaly and died shortly after birth. 
The vigil lasted only about an hour but people were in good spirits and made sure their voices were heard, they shouted in the direction of the Dáil that they did not want abortion, that Ireland without abortion treats pregnant women and that it is a safe country for them. 
The vigil was a great success, bringing people from all corners of the country on a dark December evening, keeping their spirits up and delivering the message that there are many who will continue to speak up for those who have no voice of their own.