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24th July 2020
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** In this week's issue:
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READ: (#aontu) Peadar (#aontu) Tóibín calls for government action on Chinese ‘detention camps’ and 'demographic genocide' (#aontu)

READ (#Telemedicine) : Minister for Health side-steps question on whether practice of telemedicine abortions will end (#Telemedicine)

READ: F (#sanger) ollowing years of pressure, Planned Parenthood finally acknowledges racist and eugenic origins (#sanger)

WATCH: Part 2 of Students For Life webinar (#sfl1) with Autumn Lindsay (#sfl1)

WATCH (#chris) : Webinar with Congressman Chris Smith,Deputy Carol Nolan and Senator Rónán Mullen (#chris)

JOIN UP: LoveBoth Summer Fundraising Challenge (#lb)

APPLY TODAY: Fourth Future Leaders Programme starting on 3rd August. Applications open. (#flp)

SIGN UP: (#virtualintern) Virtual Intern Programme for TY students and older (#virtualintern)
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Tóibín calls for government action on Chinese ‘detention camps’ and 'demographic genocide' ()

Aontú Leader Deputy Peadar Tóibín has called on the Government to “immediately condemn the barbaric measures being used by the Chinese Government to slash the Uighur Muslim population in China”. The Chinese onslaught which involves ‘detention camps’ and forced abortions has been labelled a 'demographic genocide' by international experts.

Deputy Tóibín has circulated a letter to colleagues in the Dáil calling on them to join him in pressuring the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs "to urgently intervene and make Ireland's opposition to this torture known, and to lobby other western and European countries to join us in condemning these practices”.

So far, Deputy Tóibín’s letter has received the support of several TDs and Senators from Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Social Democrats, Greens and Independents.

Deputy Tóibín said: “We are deeply concerned at drone footage that shows hundreds of men and women being led blindfolded onto trains. We are very concerned at reports of men and women being detained without charge or conviction for indefinite lengths of time in ‘thought transformation camps’".

He said there also have been reports that healthy members of the community that have been interned are being harvested for their organs which are to be sold on the black market.

Meanwhile, in the Seanad, Senator Rónán Mullen has also raised the plight of the Uyghur people and the way they “have been herded [by Chinese authorities] into what are effectively concentration camps to be "re-educated".

Senator Mullen said it was time for Ireland to use our “extraordinary clout in Europe” to fight for the human rights of people like the Uyghur Muslim minority in north-west China.

He said: “There are at least 85 camps. Children are separated from their parents to be brainwashed, forced to speak Chinese and made to abandon their own culture. At least 10% of the entire Uyghur population in the Xinjiang region is now incarcerated. In recent weeks, we have had even more grotesque information revealed, with China forcing Uyghur women to be sterilised or fitted with contraceptive devices in an attempt to limit the Muslim population. Pregnant women are threatened with internment in camps if they do not agree to have abortions in a clear, systematic attempt to reduce the Uyghur population.”

Senator Mullen criticised the silence from our Government and the EU, and the “conspicuous silence” from the political left in Ireland regarding the horrific news emerging from China.
Minister for Health side-steps question on whether practice of telemedicine abortions will end ()

Earlier this week in a written response to Deputy Carol Nolan, the Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly refused to confirm categorically that the system of allowing home abortions (via telemedicine) will cease after the Covid-19 crisis passes.

In his reply, Minister Donnelly was only prepared to say that the matter “will be reviewed” once the public health emergency is declared over.

Commenting on behalf of the Pro Life Campaign on this latest development, Dr Kirsten Fuller said: “Minister Donnelly’s assurances about bringing the practice of telemedicine abortions to an end falls short of the commitment given by his predecessor as Health Minister, Simon Harris, who clearly stated that telemedicine abortions would only continue until the end of the Covid-19 crisis.”

Back in May in an earlier written reply on the matter to Deputy Nolan, the then Minister for Health, Simon Harris, made it clear that the arrangement enabling home abortions “will lapse once the public health emergency is declared over.”

In this week’s public statement from the Pro Life Campaign on the matter, Dr Fuller called on Minister Donnelly to issue a more explicit statement clarifying that he intends to cease the practice of telemedicine abortions, a practice that she said as well as ending the lives of unborn babies “also potentially puts the lives of pregnant women at risk as it does not involve a face-to-face consultation between the woman and her doctor before the abortion.”

Dr Fuller continued that in the interests of public health and safety, Minister Donnelly “also needs to clarify whether he received advice from the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) before agreeing to sanction telemedicine abortions on his watch.”
In reply to a parliamentary question in April from Galway West TD Éamon Ó Cuív, then Minister for Health, Simon Harris, refused to confirm whether he had sought the advice of the CMO before signing off on allowing home abortions to take place.

Prior to the abortion referendum in 2018, Simon Harris, Stephen Donnelly, Micheál and Leo Varadkar were constantly on the public record talking about the serious risks posed to women’s health by self-administering abortion pills without medical consultation. What has changed in two years that the Government could use to justify their latest reckless decision? That answer is nothing has changed.
In reply to a separate parliamentary question (to the Minister for Health from Deputy Ó Cuív) regarding the steps taken to facilitate face-to-face check-ups for pregnant women in general during the Covid-19 crisis, the reply makes clear that in this case proper provision for face-to-face antenatal appointments was planned for from the outset and delivered upon.

The Pro Life Campaign first started raising concerns as far back as 27^th March about the Government’s approval of telemedicine home abortions, which was sanctioned without any prior public debate.

We will continue to vigorously pursue the matter until the Minister for Health answers pertinent questions and the practice itself ceases.
Following years of pressure, Planned Parenthood finally acknowledge racist and eugenic origins ()
It was widely reported across the world this week that the New York branch of Planned Parenthood (the largest abortion provider in America) accepted that their founder was a leading promoter of eugenics and racist practices.

The
New York Times reported ([link removed]) that as recently as 2016, Planned Parenthood had publicly defended Margaret Sanger, their founder, despite her strong support for the eugenics movement being widely known for decades. In 1921 Sanger wrote that ([link removed]) “the most urgent problem today is how to limit and discourage the over-fertility of the mentally and physically defective.”

Planned Parenthood's own
fact sheet ([link removed]) from 2016 which defended Sanger even admitted that she also supported sterilising people with disabilities and placing 'illiterates, paupers, unemployables, criminals, prostitutes, and dope ends' on farms to help improve themselves. One of the most shocking and controversial actions Sanger undertook was addressing a Klu Klux Klan meeting in 1926 about the benefits of birth control.
Planned Parenthood of Greater New York Spokeswoman Merle McGee finally conceded ([link removed]) that Sanger 'supported racist ideas'.

Pro-life campaigners for years have attempted to highlight the racist origins of Planned Parenthood, and even
Time Magazine in 2016 ([link removed]) corroborated these claims. Yet why did it take so long for Planned Parenthood to acknowledge the grim really about its past? And why is it only doing so now in 2020, when it is convenient for them to do so? These questions still remain.

Tragically, Planned Parenthood has performed millions of abortions throughout its history. That is perhaps no surprise given their founder's ardent support for the eugenics movement.

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This week Students For Life shared Part 2 of their recent webinar where Una Mary spoke to Autumn Lindsey from Students for Life of America ([link removed]) and student panellists.

#ProLifeStudents ([link removed]) #StudentsForLife ([link removed]) #FightForLife ([link removed]) #ProLifeGeneration ([link removed])

If you missed the webinar with Congressman Chris Smith earlier this month, you can watch his interview here. ()
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If you missed our PLC Network Webinar early this month, take a few moments to watch this TRULY UPLIFTING interview with US Congressman Chris Smith. In conversation with Wendy Grace the highly respected congressman talks about what motivates him to keep speaking up for life and he has some wonderful words of encouragement for the pro-life movement in Ireland. Don’t miss this inspiring interview that’s also joined by Deputy Carol Nolan and Senator Rónán Mullen

#prolifegen ([link removed]) #prolife ([link removed]) #chooselife ([link removed]) #loveboth ([link removed]) #support ([link removed]) #humanrights ([link removed]) #fightonloveboth ([link removed])
#prowoman ([link removed]) #probaby ([link removed])
Apply today for a place on the Future Leaders Programme ([link removed])

There is still time to apply for a place on our Future Leaders Programme, designed specifically for young people who are committed to the pro-life cause.

Following three successful courses in Dublin, Galway and online, the Future Leaders Programme is an intensive two-month course that will equip you with the competence, arguments and motivation to promote the pro-life vision in the public square.

It will impart crucial skills that will enable participants to become proactive, organised and to enhance their personal effectiveness as leaders, communicators and activists in the cause of protecting life.

The course content will be delivered by Irish and international experts, and will take place online for 8 weeks, commencing on Monday, 3rd August.

After completing this course, participants will:
* Understand the legal and medical realities surrounding the protection of life in Ireland and the EU
* Be capable of developing logically sound and emotionally compelling arguments aimed at promoting the right to life
* Be capable of using social media to promote the pro-life message efficiently and effectively
* Have experience of debating the pro-life issue in a television or radio studio
* Appreciate the challenges faced by parents with an unplanned pregnancy and be aware of the supports available to them
* Understand the Irish and EU political systems and ways that individuals and groups can influence them
* Have fun and make new friends who share the same respect for the right to life

The course takes place from 3rd August for 8 weeks from 7:00 – 9:30pm online.

If you are aged between 18-30 and wish to apply to participate, please complete application form here ([link removed]) by Wednesday, 29th July and we will get back to you. There are 15 sponsored places available for suitable participants.
There's still time to SIGN UP or SPONSOR the LoveBoth 5k Challenge. ()
We are thrilled with the number of people who have already registered to complete a 5K run or walk to raise much needed funds for support services for women in unplanned pregnancy and new mothers. There's so much interest that we are extending the initiative for July!

If you have already registered to take part, please share it on social media and nominate five others to join you. If you haven't signed up, why not do so today? All you need to do is commit to doing a 5k walk or run.
You can register here ([link removed])

Once you register, you will get an invitation to join the online 'Team' and we will send you out your official LoveBoth fundraising pack. They you can get on the road like some of our many volunteers below!

How else can you support the cause?

Whether you are doing the challenge or not you can donate to this this fundraiser here ([link removed])

Are you a secondary school (TY or older) or third level student? Would you like to experience working with a pro-active Human Rights organisation and develop skills in advocacy, campaign management and project planning? We are seeking ‘virtual’ interns to work part-time from home at this time. Internships run for one week periods throughout the Summer.

Click
here ([link removed]) to find out more and apply instantly!
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Follow us on social media!

Vital Signs is the e-newsletter of the Pro Life Campaign. We hope you and your families are keeping well in these unusual times. This email is to update you on what we have been working on recently, including news stories, project updates, and details of upcoming events. If you want to get in touch with us please do so by emailing [email protected]

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