HOME    ABOUT    GREEN    VIOLET    RED    SCARLET    RAINBOW    BLACK    MUSIC    ART    POETRY    PHILOSOPHY    RANDOM

Thursday, April 5, 2018

Ireland: Abortion Referendum to be held May 25


Campaigning for abortion rights in Ireland has stepped up since the announcement of the date and wording of a referendum on constitutional change to allow abortion. The referendum will be held on May 25. It will ask voters whether to repeal the section of the Irish constitution that bans abortion, and to allow parliament to make laws to regulate abortion.

Currently, abortion is banned by the Irish constitution under an amendment (the Eighth Amendment) adopted by referendum in 1983. According to the amendment,

The State acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right.’

According to Shauna Stanley of the Melbourne Irish Abortion Rights Campaign, the impetus for the amendment was the Roe v Wade ruling in the US. Anti-abortion activists in Ireland wanted to prevent similar judicial intervention from making abortion accessible to women in the republic.

Abortion rights campaigners have waged a campaign for over 30 years, beginning with the "No" campaign in that referendum, and continuing efforts that have borne fruit in a change in public attitudes, constitutional and legal change and now the growing call to repeat the Eighth Amendment.

Attempts by the state to restrict pregnant women's access to information about abortion and right to travel to obtain abortion were overturned by successive referenda, which added two further amendments to the constitution:

This subsection shall not limit freedom to travel between the State and another state.’
This subsection shall not limit freedom to obtain or make available, in the State, subject to such conditions as may be laid down by law, information relating to services lawfully available in another state.’
While the later provisions give people needing abortion some protection, it means (as many abortion rights campaigners point out) abortion is a problem that Ireland exports. As a result of the ban, an estimated 4000 women and non-binary or trans people travel abroad (mostly to the UK, but also the Netherlands and France) each year to obtain abortion. Up to 2000 risk a 14 year gaol term by taking medications obtained online, to induce abortion. The number who are unable to obtain abortion and simply continue a crisis pregnancy, with all the impacts that has, is unknown.
Ireland's abortion ban is among the strictest in the world. It is extensive, with few exceptions. The impact of the ban on abortion in Ireland is not only felt by women who are simply not ready for parenting, or who can't manage for socioeconomic reasons, but also those who have conceived from rape, are in coercive or violent relationships or have serious but not life-threatening health problems. Although the constitution refers to the "equal right" to life of the mother, the chilling effect of the abortion ban on healthcare providers and institutions is so extreme that in 2012 it led to the death of a woman, Savita Halappanavar, who was miscarrying. Although she was told her miscarriage was inevitable and requested medical intervention to empty her uterus, it was refused on the basis that there was still a foetal heartbeat - and despite her condition deteriorating as she developed overwhelming infection as a result of the miscarriage.

Savita's death galvanised the growing community opposition to the abortion ban, with massive and growing annual marches for choice calling for abortion to be legal. In a quirky twist, the appearance in around 2012, of insensitive graphic billboard advertising publicising opposition to abortion, itself sparked a renewed enthusiasm for organising and mobilising for abortion rights among a layer of the community.

A 2013 law, the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act, subsequently codified that threats to the woman's life (as distinct from health), including the risk of suicide, would constitute grounds for abortion.

Attempts by the parliament to widen eligibility of people who could become pregnant have been struck down by the courts, because of the constitutional protection of the foetus. According to Stanley, this has also led to a strengthening of the pro-choice movement and its focus on calls to repeal the Eighth Amendment.

According to Stanley, in 2016, the campaign started to gain more momentum. Recognising the centenary of the Dublin Easter Rising, the Abortion Rights Campaign ran a campaign under the slogan "Rise and Repeal," linking the campaign for abortion rights to republican struggle and Ireland's historical context. The campaign drew out the proclamation of the republic's founder that the it was to be one in which Irish men and Irish women would have equal rights - something clearly absent in an Ireland where half the population is denied reproductive justice.

In the same period, the Repeal Project apparel campaign took off. Black jumpers with the word "repeal" on them spread the message and sparked conversations among people who might not have identified with more traditional political campaign activism.

During the Polish "Black Friday" women's strike of 2016, when the Polish government threatened to wind back what little space there is for legal abortion in that country, members of the Polish diaspora within Ireland mobilised in solidarity. Inspired by this action, on International Women's Day in March 2017, the abortion rights movement in Ireland held a women's strike - wearing black and staying away from work.

In line with the rising activism and campaign visibility, opinion polls in recent years have shown majority support for liberalising access to abortion.

As the campaign for reform continued to gain traction, the issue was referred to the Irish Citizens' Assembly, an exercise in deliberative democracy involving a random selection of citizens, tasked with making recommendations about a range of issues. In April 2017, they voted to recommend a referendum to repeal the Eighth Amendment and allow the government to legislate to regulate abortion.

In response, Leo Varadkhar, the Irish prime minister (Taoiseach), announced in September that the referendum would be held in mid-2018.

Announcement of the exact timing and wording of the referendum was delayed while the government awaited a Supreme Court ruling on whether the constitution provides for any foetal rights other than the right to life. The March 6 Supreme Court ruling that there are no other foetal rights under the constitution than the right to life paved the way for the decisions to be made on the referendum.

The Irish cabinet marked International Women's Day (IWD) 2018 by introducing the legislation to hold the referendum, and on March 25th, the May 25th referendum date was announced. The government has pledged that if the referendum is passed, it will introduce legislation to replace the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act, decriminalising abortion for the pregnant person and introducing laws that make abortion readily available in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, with restrictions as to reason thereafter.

Together4Yes, a coalition of over 70 groups from across Ireland, launched its campaign - modelled on the successful marriage equality campaign - on March 22. In the lead-up to the launch, member organisations have been training canvassers and recruiting volunteers from across the country to undertake the task of doorknocking and engaging people across the country, with a focus on those who are undecided.

The breadth of support for the campaign is evident in the packed calendar of campaign activities around Ireland, from art installations, public meetings and campaign stalls to punk gigs, singalongs, story-telling and comedy events.

And the campaign isn't limited to Ireland. In 2016, the online campaign Repeal Global was initiated to call and coordinate solidarity actions to coincide with the major annual marches for choice. Just like during the marriage equality campaign, there are campaign committees in the Irish diaspora around the world. The London Irish Abortion Rights Campaign launched a #hometovote campaign urging eligible voters around the world to make plans to travel back to vote in the referendum.

In Australia, campaign events have been held since 2016, with rallies in Melbourne in solidarity with the marches for choice in Dublin in 2016 and 2017, and other actions in Sydney, Perth and Darwin. The Melbourne Irish Abortion Rights Campaign formed a contingent calling for repeal of the eighth amendment to march in Melbourne's IWD march in 2017.

In the countdown to the referendum, Stanley says, the campaign focus is on fundraising. "Living in Australia, it would cost $2000 to return to Ireland to vote. Irish citizens who have been out of the country for 18 months aren't allowed to vote. And the laws about donations to electoral campaigns are quite strict. Only citizens can donate. Many of us are going to return to Ireland some day. And we want to return to an Ireland that has proper healthcare. If you need an abortion, you should be able to get it in your home country. We want to do something. Even if we can't vote, we can raise money to support the campaign. We want to reach out to members of the Irish diaspora in other cities, to support them to be part of the campaign - whether it's organising fundraisers, or participating in the social media campaigns, or encouraging to talk with their grandparents back home."

And in the spirit of the solidarity that connects the Polish and Irish struggles, she added, "and we want to support the campaigns in Australia, in NSW and Queensland. We'd like to support organising solidarity in the states where abortion is legal, to help the campaigns in NSW and Queensland, where it's not."

Connect with the Melbourne Irish Abortion Rights Campaign on Facebook at "Irish Pro Choice in Oz."

No comments:

Post a Comment