SPUC the UK's leading pro-life organisation has said that
new legislation on abortion introduced to the Northern Ireland Assembly is a
response to the level of public concern aroused by the arrival in Northern
Ireland of Marie Stopes International (MSI).
Liam Gibson, the development officer for the Society for the
Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) www.spuc.org.uk in Northern Ireland,
believes that the opening of the MSI abortion facility in Belfast in October
last year left the Assembly with no choice but to address the threat posed by
abortion businesses determined to defy the existing law.
Mr Gibson said: "MSI has long campaigned to make the Abortion
Act in Britain even more liberal and then have the amended Act extended to
Northern Ireland.
"There are also serious safety concerns regarding MSI.
The drugs used to procure medical abortions are extremely dangerous and are
known to have caused the deaths of 15 women worldwide, including Manon Jones,
an 18 year-old from Bristol and Jesse-Maye Barlow, a 19 year-old from Staines.
Mr Gibson continued: "When questioned before the
Assembly's Justice Committee in January, representatives from MSI said that
there was nothing to stop them from aborting babies at 18 weeks, 24 weeks or
even older. They also admitted that the location of the centre, close to the
Europa bus and train station, was chosen to facilitate clients travelling from
the Republic to have abortions in Northern Ireland.
"At the same time they made it clear that MSI simply
would not tolerate any official oversight of its activities by the government
authorities in Northern Ireland. That is a position which the Assembly can't
allow to continue and made the introduction of new legislation
inevitable", concluded Mr Gibson.
Liam Gibson, SPUC's Northern Ireland development officer,
can be contacted on:
mobile: 07535 756005
landline: 028 9077 8018
email: liamgibson@spuc.org.uk
