In a remarkable and telling intervention in the Seanad yesterday, Senator Lorraine Clifford Lee said that the ‘Independent Chair’ of the Three Year Review of the abortion law only had to be “independent of Government, not independent of the issue.”
She made her comments in reply to Senator Rónán Mullen who was challenging the Minister for Health’s decision to abandon the tendering process that was promised in finding an independent chairperson for the review. In the end, Minister Donnelly bypassed the process and appointed barrister Marie O’Shea as Chair. Since her appointment a fortnight ago, he has repeatedly refused to answer specific questions regarding the appointment, including the fact that Ms O’Shea is known to have engaged in social media activity that showed a preference for repeal of the 8th Amendment and the legalisation of abortion in Ireland.
Senator Clifford Lee’s remarks yesterday that the Chair of the review only had to be “independent of Government, not independent of the issue” reveals the crude and blinkered thinking at the heart of the process and the total disregard for objectivity and fairness.
Senator Cliifford Lee was among the 11 groups and individuals that the Pro Life Campaign revealed last week met with the Minister for Health to discuss the framework and scope of the Three Year Review prior to its establishment. All of the groups and individuals Minister Donnelly met with represented the pro-abortion viewpoint. He turned down repeated requests for meetings from the All Party Oireachtas Life and Dignity Group and the Pro Life Campaign.
Based on all that has happened to date, the credibility of the Three Year Review is quickly evaporating. Stephen Donnelly can keep issuing statements all he likes about his commitment to ensuring an impartial process but unless immediate and verifiable steps are taken to guarantee a truly independent review, the standing of the entire process will soon be shattered beyond repair.
A new study from the University of Iowa has found that babies born between 22 and 28 weeks gestation in the years 2013 - 2018 had a significantly better odds of “survival to discharge” from hospital compared to previously recorded survival rates.
The study Mortality, In-Hospital Morbidity, Care Practices, and 2-Year Outcomes for Extremely Preterm Infants in the US, 2013-2018, reveals that 78.3% of babies between 22 to 28 weeks survived premature births, which is considerably higher than would have been the case even a decade or so earlier.
As is the case in other countries, abortion is now legal in Ireland on vague and ill-defined “health” grounds beyond the gestational stage that the babies cited in the latest research survived. It brings home the reality of just how cruel, inhumane and indefensible legalised abortion is and how incoherent and inconsistent it is for abortion supporting medics to be celebrating the medical advances in saving the lives of premature babies while on the other hand justifying the killing of unborn babies at the very same gestational stage of development.
Link here to latest findings on survival rates for premature babies
Irish born pro-life doctor Dermot Kearney is preparing to challenge an order blocking him from helping women who decided to take the abortion pill but changed their mind and now wish to save their baby’s life.
Dr Kearney, who is a consultant cardiologist has been temporarily banned from offering a treatment known as “abortion pill reversal” (APR), after the General Medical Council (GMC), which regulates U.K. doctors, referred the case to an interim orders tribunal, which ruled that Dr Kearney had to stop providing the treatment.
The tribunal said that the interim conditions should “remain in place, subject to review” after a hearing last month.
When the case is heard at the Royal Courts of Justice later this month, lawyers will argue that the interim order should never have been issued and ought to be lifted.
Supporters of Dr Kearney’s have spoken about the lives of unborn babies he has saved from certain death after assisting mothers in reversing the effects of the first abortion pill they had taken. Some of the mothers Dr Kearney helped have also come forward to publicly express their thanks to him for saving the lives of their children.
Mifepristone, also known as Mifeprex and RU-486, is a pill that pregnant women commonly take first when seeking a medical abortion, followed later by a second pill containing misoprostol.
When a woman seeks APR, a doctor prescribes a pill containing progesterone. APR has saved the lives of countless babies around the world who were on the brink of dying from the abortion pills that their mothers had taken.
Let’s hope Dr Kearney is successful in his latest court challenge. He is an incredibly brave and selfless defender of life and deserves great credit for the stance he is taking.
Do you want to work with a dynamic human rights organisation?
Closing Dates for all vacancies is the 18th of February
The Pro Life Campaign is looking for a Campaigns Officer to join our high performing and growing human rights organisation.
We have an opportunity for an ambitious and passionate individual to help drive high profile, public-facing campaigns to achieve positive pro-life change across Ireland. As a Campaigns Officer you will lead in planning tactics and delivering cross-organisational activities that influence real change in Government and individuals.
The Pro Life Campaign is looking for a Media Officer to join our high performing and growing human rights organisation.
We have an opportunity for an ambitious and passionate individual to help drive and foster good media relationships in order to achieve positive pro-life change across Ireland. As a Media Officer you will lead in planning, organising, communicating, and delivering media content across traditional and new media platforms.
Students for Life is seeking a dynamic and motivated individual who will contribute to the strategic development of the pro-life movement in Ireland via their role as Student Outreach Officer. This is an exciting opportunity for a suitable candidate who is deeply committed to pro-life activism.
Would you like to experience working with a pro-active Human Rights organisation?
If you would like, APPLY HERE to our exciting virtual intern programme for students!
Participants on the programme will have an opportunity to network with other young people and develop skills in advocacy, campaign management and project planning.
Internships run for one-week periods and are suitable for second level (Transition year or older) and third level students.
Each intern will do 4 hours supervised work each day and will be working on areas such as social media, contact with members of the movement nationwide, project planning and contributing to support work for women and their babies.
Internships are not paid, however expenses will be covered.
If you or a family member is interested, please complete the below form and we will be in touch with you presently. Placements are subject to availability.
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]
