Benefits of Eighth Amendment are plainly seen

SIR, I am so sick of listening to misinformation in this debate that I have to point out some actual facts on the issue of abortion.

Firstly the benefits of the Eighth Amendment are to be seen extensively in Ireland. A recent, independently produced, actuarial report compared the number of Irish women who travel abroad to avail of abortion, to abortion rates in other EU countries. It concluded that the Eighth Amendment has saved at least 100,000 lives in the last two decades. That’s the population of Co. Kilkenny. In Ireland, we have a culture of equality and inclusion that we can be proud of and the Eighth Amendment is part of that.

Irish women have spoken openly through the pro-life campaign about the Eighth Amendment providing them with the space to think and reflect. In this space and time, they changed their minds and did not have an abortion. They have expressed deeply how grateful they are for this. Also, it is important to note that eight out of 10 rape victims did not have an abortion (Rape Crisis Centre 2010 Annual Report)

Secondly, abortion is a violent method designed to kill a life. No less than 191,014 abortions were carried out in England and Wales in 2015. Of these, a staggering 98 per cent were performed for social reasons, 37 per cent were performed on women who had at least one previous abortion, and 50 women having their eighth abortion. In Sweden 41 per cent of all abortions are repeat abortions. Abortion always starts off as ‘restrictive’. History shows us that it then becomes abortion on demand, no matter what the country, no matter what the initial intention.

In the UK, babies with cleft palates, which are surgically rectifiable, can be aborted. Just let that resonate with you for a moment. A cleft pallet that can be rectified. With time, abortion becomes normalised and laws shape our behaviour. We’ve all seen how attitudes to smoking, wearing safety belts and drink driving have shifted after changes to the law.

Thirdly the humanity of the baby needs to be highlighted. With the use of ultrasound scans, we know that the baby’s heart starts beating at 21 days. At just six weeks, the baby’s eyes and eyelids, nose, mouth, and tongue have formed. Electrical brain activity can be detected at six or seven weeks, and by the end of the eighth week, all the baby’s organs are developing.

We can’t deny now in 2018 that this is a live, vulnerable and innocent baby who’s life is in our hands.

Sincerely, Frances Kelleher, Killarney.