Eighth Amendment has created ‘legal paralysis,’ Lawyers for Yes says

Eighth Amendment has created ‘legal paralysis,’ Lawyers for Yes says
12 week access to abortion is ‘far from liberal’ and is in fact ‘highly restrictive’

April 30, 2018
Sorcha Pollak

The Eighth Amendment of the Constitution has created “absolute legal paralysis in dealing with crisis pregnancies” and must be repealed if women in Ireland are to receive “appropriate” and “compassionate” healthcare, lawyers calling for a Yes vote have said.

Speaking at the ‘Lawyers for Yes’ press conference on Monday, Gráinne Gilmore BL said the eighth amendment had proven itself to be “a failed legal experiment” and “an outlier among constitutions of the world”.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/eighth-amendment-has-created-legal-paralysis-lawyers-for-yes-says-1.3478987


Ireland – Abortion Q&A: What will happen after you vote in the referendum?

Abortion Q&A: What will happen after you vote in the referendum?
Government will introduce abortion legislation if Yes side wins

April 30, 2018
Sarah Bardon

Irish citizens vote on the issue of abortion on May 25th. They will be asked whether or not to delete Article 40.3.3 of the Constitution (known as the Eighth Amendment) and replace it with a new Article allowing the Oireachtas to legislate on the issue.

What is the Government proposing?
The Government is proposing to bring legislation before the Dáil in the event that the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution is repealed in the May 25th referendum. The Eighth Amendment gives the unborn an equal right to life as the mother and therefore prohibits abortion in almost all cases.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/abortion-q-a-what-will-happen-after-you-vote-in-the-referendum-1.3478922


Left in the Dark on Contraception, Young Chinese Seek Abortions

Left in the Dark on Contraception, Young Chinese Seek Abortions
With premarital sex on the rise and sex ed lacking, more young women are facing unintended pregnancies.

Cai Yiwen
2018-04-30

SHANGHAI — Lying on the operating table, Qing watched as her doctor arranged the medical instruments she’d be using, piece by piece. For the first time since she decided to have an abortion, she started to panic: She had barely known anything about the procedure when she made the decision, and now the reality of the imminent surgery was sinking in. When the teen woke up an hour later, the 7-week-old embryo inside her had been removed.

Qing, whose name has been changed to protect her privacy, attends a high school in eastern China’s Fujian province that has never taught its students about sex or contraception, the 16-year-old said. Nor have her parents or other adults in her life ever broached such topics.

Continued: http://www.sixthtone.com/news/1002188/left-in-the-dark-on-contraception%2C-young-chinese-seek-abortions


Facebook launches transparency tool for Irish abortion vote

Facebook launches transparency tool for Irish abortion vote

30 Apr 2018

A new tool from Facebook that allows users in Ireland to view the sources of sponsored posts ahead of a referendum on abortion rights fails the test of true transparency on the platform, say critics.

Launched initially on April 25 as part of a transparency pilot program, the View Ads feature shows Irish users all ads any Facebook page is promoting to people in Ireland, even if those ads are not in their individual news feed.

Continued: https://www.wikitribune.com/story/2018/04/30/internet/facebook-launches-transparency-tool-in-ireland-for-abortion-vote/68061/


Ireland – Coveney reveals what convinced him to back abortion

Coveney reveals what convinced him to back abortion

Ralph Riegel
April 30 2018

Tánaiste Simon Coveney revealed he dramatically changed his position on potential post-Eighth Amendment legislation following an emotional private meeting with a young woman who had gone through a crisis pregnancy.

The Cork TD said he "confronted myself" over the potential aftermath of the amendment's repeal.

Continued: https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/abortion-referendum/coveney-reveals-what-convinced-him-to-back-abortion-36857139.html


Ireland – Abortion regime will remain the same until legislation passed

Abortion regime will remain the same until legislation passed
Unclear how long it will take for new law to be passed if Eighth Amendment is repealed

Apr 30, 2018
Colm Keena

The Irish abortion regime will remain as it is until new legislation is passed, even if the referendum on removing the abortion provision in the Constitution is passed on May 25th.

How long it will take for the Oireachtas to pass a new law is unclear, but it could be done before the end of the year. However, should the Government fall in the meantime, that timetable would most likely be extended.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/abortion-regime-will-remain-the-same-until-legislation-passed-1.3479455


Ireland – 8th Amendment demands punishment for women

Fintan O’Toole: 8th Amendment demands punishment for women
Constitutional ban means Ireland too extreme even for mainstream social conservatives

April 30, 2018
Fintan O'Toole

I’m not sure people who want to defend the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution know how extreme their position is. Extreme, that is to say, not by the standards of those of us who always opposed it and would like it to be repealed, but even by the standards of mainstream social conservatism.

The Eighth is, in one crucial respect, on the lunatic fringe of anti-abortion activism. This is because, as has been made clear in recent years, it does not merely outlaw abortion in all but a very small range of circumstances. It does something else, something that most sensible conservatives regard as repugnant – it demands severe punishment for women who have abortions. There is no way around this: while the Eighth is in place, Ireland is committed to treating abortion, not just as a moral wrong, but as a crime more serious than, for example, child rape.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/fintan-o-toole-8th-amendment-demands-punishment-for-women-1.3479390


Humanae Vitae: The Story Behind the Ban on Contraception

Humanae Vitae: The Story Behind the Ban on Contraception
2018 Issue 1, By Conscience
Posted Apr 29, 2018

Fifty Years Ago, Pope Paul VI Slammed The Door On Catholics’ use of modern contraceptives with the encyclical Humanae Vitae and its fateful words: “The Church…in urging men to the observance of the precepts of the natural law, which it interprets by its constant doctrine, teaches that each and every marital act must of necessity retain its intrinsic relationship to the procreation of human life.” 1

Humanae Vitae marked a turning point for the Catholic church, as Pope Paul rejected the theologically sound findings of his own Papal Birth Control Commission in favor of a turn to rigid orthodoxy. Having missed the chance to craft a modern, compassionate sexual ethic based on the individual consciences of Catholics, the church found itself largely ignored on matters of sex by its own faithful, which left it grasping for other ways to enforce its teachings. It was also a historic moment for the rest of the world, as Humanae Vitae would come to dominate the hierarchy’s stance on public health challenges like the spread of HIV/ AIDS and access to birth control in the developing world.

Continued: http://consciencemag.org/2018/04/29/humanae-vitae/


Eighth Amendment causing uncertainty for doctors – gynaecologist

Eighth Amendment causing uncertainty for doctors – gynaecologist
Irish women can be trusted to make the right decisions about their treatment, says medic

Sun, Apr 29, 2018
Barry Roche

The Eighth Amendment should be repealed as it is causing uncertainty and difficulty for doctors and delaying the treatment of seriously ill women, a gynaecologist has said.

Speaking at the launch of Fine Gael’s Yes campaign in Cork, Prof Richard Greene said the amendment and the termination of pregnancy were difficult issues with both sides of the debate offering opposing views as to how it affects practitioners and patients.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/eighth-amendment-causing-uncertainty-for-doctors-gynaecologist-1.3478274


Migrant women ‘disproportionately affected’ by Eighth Amendment

Migrant women ‘disproportionately affected’ by Eighth Amendment
Refugee support groups call for Repeal of the Eighth to protect rights of migrant women

April 29, 2018
Sorcha Pollak

Migrant women, including women seeking asylum, are “disproportionately and adversely affected” by the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution, refugee support groups have said.

Women who are asylum-seekers, refugees, undocumented or victims of trafficking and who do not have the right to travel freely between Ireland and the UK or mainland Europe currently face a unique set of legal and financial barriers when it comes to accessing abortion services, the Immigrant Council of Ireland, the Irish Refugee Council, the Migrant and Refugee Rights Centre (NASC) and Doras Luimní have warned.

Continued: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/migrant-women-disproportionately-affected-by-eighth-amendment-1.3478244