Cynical pro-abortion campaign targeted babies with life limiting conditions

The private members bill introduced by Clare Daly, in an attempt to expand availability of abortion in Ireland to include babies with life limiting conditions, was defeated on Tuesday by 104 votes to 20.  It would be foolish to take comfort from the result on the basis that the government could not vote in favour of a bill they had been advised was unconstitutional.

This was a cynical move by pro-abortion forces and a compliant media in manipulating public opinion. Clare Daly knew perfectly well that her private members bill was unconstitutional and could not be accepted by the Government in the absence of a referendum. The bill was designed to take aim at 40.3.3 of the Irish constitution with a view to putting pressure the Irish Government to hold a referendum.

There is no doubt that Daly mounted an effective campaign judging by the fact that many of those who voted against it expressed sympathy with its objectives, including the Minister for Health Leo Varadkar.  Three members of the Fianna Fail party also voted for it, including the health and justice spokesmen.

There is growing pressure from the pro-abortion side to remove Article 40.3.3 from the Irish Constitution which would inevitably lead to abortion on demand. Taoiseach Enda Kenny however says he is not prepared to have another divisive abortion referendum at the present time. It is likely however to be an issue in the next election and afterwards.

Daly argued the bill on compassionate grounds but everyone knows she supports abortion on demand up to birth and will do everything possible to further her deadly agenda.

Daly’s approach ignores the hundreds of women who decide to give life a chance and allow their babies to live as long as they possibly can.  It is also very hurtful to such women when Daly and her colleagues describe their babies as ‘non-viable’ and ‘incompatible with life’.

Sadly the unfortunate women who had been encouraged to terminate the lives of unborn babies suffering from life limiting conditions were used in the process.

New Attack on Ireland by the Centre for Reproductive Rights

We reported last November on a new attempt to broaden the basis on which terminations of pregnancy may be obtained in Ireland following reports that a group of Irish women who each decided to abort their babies following a diagnosis of fetal abnormality were taking a case to the United Nations Human Rights Committee with the assistance of an international pro-abortion law firm the Centre for Reproductive Rights (CRR).

It has now become clear that the CRR decided to arrange to have this done in a drip, drip method by lodging a petition to have only one of the cases considered by the committee.

We now understand that the CRR filed a second challenge against Ireland on March 13^th 2014 before the same Committee. The Center filed this case on behalf of Siobhán Whelan, who was they falsely claim ‘forced by Ireland’s harsh restrictions on abortion’, to travel to the United Kingdom to obtain a so called ‘safe and legal abortion services’ after she learned that she was carrying a baby with a fatal anomaly.

The Center filed a petition before the United Nations Human Rights Committee to hold Ireland accountable for violating Ms Whelan’s basic human rights by subjecting her to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, interfering with her privacy, and discriminating against her on the basis of her gender.

There is no such right as a so called 'right' to abortion in any International UN Treaty, quite the reverse in fact, the right to life of all members of the human family is protected in the Universal declaration of human rights and its associated covenants.

There has however been much criticism of treaty monitoring committees, such as the committee in question, that they bring the United Nations into disrepute by reinterpreting the texts to find so-called non-existent rights.

It must be stated, whist one has every sympathy with a woman who finds herself in this appalling predicament abortion is not the answer. Despite the pressure placed on women in this difficult situation to abort their babies and the tendency to describe the unfortunate children as monsters, abortion is not the way forward, there is a better way, a caring way of dealing with the devastating news that an unborn baby has not developed fully and is suffering from a terminal condition.

It is essential for women in this awful predicament to have support such as that which can be provided by perinatal hospice care.

The perinatal hospice approach is one that walks with families on their journey through pregnancy, birth, and death, honoring the baby as well as the baby's family. Perinatal hospice is not a place; it is more a frame of mind. It is a way of caring for the pregnant mother, the baby, the father, and all involved with dignity and love. Even in areas without a formal program, parents can create a loving experience for themselves and their baby, and health professionals and family and friends can offer support in the spirit of hospice care.

Press Release by Mattie Mc Grath TD on the Fatal Foetal Abnormality amendment to the Protection of Life in Pregnancy Act 2013

Independent TD Mattie McGrath has said the introduction of an amendment to the Protection of Life Bill 2013 by Deputy Clare Daly must be used as an opportunity to highlight the broader abortion agenda that is being pursued in the State. Deputy McGrath was speaking after Deputy Daly introduced a Fatal Foetal Abnormality amendment under new rules governing such procedures. The new procedures allow a member to speak for five minutes without opposition on any amendment they introduce. While the Government accepted the Amendment for discussion it in no way implies that the Government supports the motion being sought:

“It must first be acknowledged that this was one of the most particularly sensitive and emotive elements of the debate on abortion which he had some months ago. During those debates there were many submissions made by both members of the Oireachtas and interested parties who sought to have the grounds for an abortion extended to include unborn children with Fatal Foetal Abnormalities. Such an amendment was not accepted then and I do not believe it should be accepted now. While compassion for the trauma that such a situation brings must be given to the families concerned, I do not believe it is possible to provide such an amendment without essentially giving rise to an abortion on demand regime. I would suggest that instead of targeting what may be an extremely sick child in the womb that we put our efforts into providing therapeutic services in place that will enable the mother and the family to continue the pregnancy in as supportive an environment as possible. We know from the research available to us that far from alleviating mental distress in these circumstances that having an abortion actually increases the likelihood of profound and lasting psychological pain.”

The Amendment comes on foot the action being taken by three Irish women who have lodged a complaint against Ireland to the UN on the grounds that they were unable to abort their fatally handicapped babies in Ireland and who are being helped by one of America’s leading pro-abortion groups, the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR). The organisation favours ultra-liberal abortion laws. It is opposed to bans on ‘partial-birth’ abortions and sex selective abortions:

“The fact this amendment is being actively and vigorously supported by the likes of the CRR is deeply worrying and at the very least indicates that there is a broader agenda at play here. For now at least there is slim chance of the Amendment passing and that is be welcomed. I would be very concerned however that support for it may grow given the history of this Taoiseach to back track on any statements he has made on the abortion issue. It is certainly an amendment that I will be following closely because we need to keep the focus on not allowing any extensions to this abortion bill which is bad enough as it is,” 

concluded Deputy McGrath.
ENDS

New Attack on Unborn Babies in Ireland

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In a new attack on the unborn in Ireland Independent TD Clare Daly is to introduce a private members bill in the Dáil (Irish Parliament) to allow for abortion in the case of fatal foetal abnormality.

--> This proposal comes just one week after a group of Irish women undertook a new attempt to broaden the basis on which terminations of pregnancy may be obtained in Ireland. The women who decided to abort their babies in the UK, following a diagnosis of fetal abnormality are taking a case to the United Nations Human Rights Committee with the assistance of an international pro-abortion law firm the Centre for Reproductive Rights (CRR). 

The Irish Times reports that the Government will not oppose the introduction of the Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill.

Ms Daly claimed without any evidence that 90 per cent of Irish people believed a pregnancy should be ended where the abnormality was such that the foetus could not survive outside the womb, “and also claimed that the only argument against it is the unpublished opinion of the Attorney General, whom we are are told says it would be unconstitutional”.
On the contrary it could be said the vast majority of Irish people are pro-life and would not agree with this approach. What is clearly necessary is proper care during pregnancy and perinatal hospice care.

According to the Irish Times, Daly said that other legal experts including a former attorney general disagreed with her expressed view and said. “The only way to resolve the conflict is to introduce legislation and have the Supreme Court adjudicate it”.

Ms Daly also claimed the previous attorney general had argued before the European Court of Human Rights that there was a tenable argument that the issue should be considered by domestic courts on the grounds that the foetus was not unborn for the purposes of article 40.3.3 of the Constitution.
This is clearly an incorrect interpretation of the Irish Constitution.

Women who had UK abortions to bring case against Ireland to the United Nations

In a new attempt to broaden the basis on which terminations of pregnancy may be obtained in Ireland the Journal reports that a group of Irish women who each decided to abort their babies following a diagnosis of fetal abnormality are taking a case to the United Nations Human Rights Committee with the assistance of an international pro-abortion law firm the Centre for Reproductive Rights (CRR).

It is understood that the lodgement of petitions to have their case considered by the committee will take place next week.

There is no such right as a so called 'right' to abortion in any International UN Treaty, quite the reverse in fact, the right to life of all members of the human family is protected in the Universal declaration of human rights and its associated covenants.

There has however been much criticism of treaty monitoring committees, such as the committee in question, that they bring the United Nations into disrepute by reinterpreting the texts to find so-called non existent rights.

It must be stated, whist one has every sympathy with a woman who finds herself in this appalling predicament abortion is not the answer. Despite the pressure placed on women in this difficult situation to abort their babies and the tendency to describe the unfortunate children as monsters, abortion is not the way forward, there is a better way, a caring way of dealing with the devastating news that an unborn baby has not developed fully and is suffering from a terminal condition.

It is essential for women in this awful predicament to have support such as that which can be provided by perinatal hospice care.

The perinatal hospice approach is one that walks with families on their journey through pregnancy, birth, and death, honoring the baby as well as the baby's family. Perinatal hospice is not a place; it is more a frame of mind. It is a way of caring for the pregnant mother, the baby, the father, and all involved with dignity and love. Even in areas without a formal program, parents can create a loving experience for themselves and their baby, and health professionals and family and friends can offer support in the spirit of hospice care.

Many Irish women have taken the decision to cherish every day of the life their baby without ever having heard of the perinatal hospice concept as is presented in this BLOGPOST and video

The following is the text of the Journal report

THE GROUP REPRESENTING women who travelled to the UK to terminate unviable pregnancies are to bring their case to the United Nations.

Terminations for Medical Reasons (TFMR) and the Centre for Reproductive Rights will file three petitions alleging human rights violations with the UN Human Rights Committee next week

The mothers have campaigned since last April – when some of them appeared on the Late Late Show - to change the current situation in Ireland which sees women travel to other jurisdictions for terminations if their babies are suffering with fatal foetal abnormalities.

Various pleas and protests directed at government members failed to garner the necessary support to be included in the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 because of fears that the provision would be unconstitutional.

Another demonstration will be held outside Leinster House on Wednesday afternoon ahead of a press conference to discuss the petitions being filed.

Members of TFMR were devastated of the omission from the legislation this year but vowed to take their cases to Europe and beyond.

The women have shared the trauma of having to travel to Liverpool and other English cities to undergo terminations to journalists and politicians in the past eight months.

“We are looking for nothing extreme here. Just decency, dignity and compassion,” Deirdre Conroy, the woman at the centre of the ‘D’ case which was heard at the European Court of Human Rights, said earlier this year.