A highly-regarded obstetrician in the Republic of Ireland has urged citizens to vote ‘no’ in the country’s upcoming referendum on abortion.
The Irish constitution’s Eighth Amendment pledges to “defend and vindicate” the equal right to life of the unborn and the mother, “as far as practicable”.
A referendum on whether to repeal the amendment will take place next Friday, 25 May.
Untruths
Mr Trevor Hayes, who has twice been named Ireland’s Obstetrician of the year by Maternity and Infant Magazine, slammed the ‘yes’ campaign for spreading false information that women are being hurt because of the amendment.
“I am very concerned that recent weeks have seen significant and untrue public statements about the practice of maternal healthcare in this country.
“No doctor doing their job properly would wait until there is an immediate and critical threat to a pregnant woman’s life before acting to protect the woman, the Eighth Amendment does not stop me from doing my job”, he said at a pro-life event in the country.
…significant and untrue public statements about the practice of maternal healthcare in this country.
Consequences
Dr Hayes also raised concerns about the serious consequences of a ‘yes’ vote.
“If repeal were to happen, ninety nine percent of abortions would take place for any reason at all or on supposed mental health grounds.
“That’s the reality based on what has happened in other countries”.
Pain and problems
Ireland’s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar is campaigning to remove the constitutional protections, as is Micheál Martin, leader of Fianna Fáil, the major opposition party.
However, Fianna Fáil TD Mary Butler, recently spoke out against repealing the amendment.
She said a ‘yes’ vote would create “more pain and more problems” for Irish women.
“Abortion doesn’t make pain go away. It’s not a medical treatment nor is it a treatment for depression or abandonment.
Same mistakes
“The only thing abortion does is to take away the life of the baby”, she wrote in The Times.
Butler went on to say that future generations will judge Ireland “on how we protect life at this critical moment.
“Introducing abortion on demand will not make this a more compassionate society, it will just copy the mistakes made in England.”
The only thing abortion does is to take away the life of the baby.
