Alternatives to abortion are a priority

The Government has failed to focus on positive alternatives to abortion despite the fact that many of the electorate have “pleaded” with the Government to create a space for such debate, a leading pro-life group has said.

Speaking at a press conference this afternoon in Dublin, spokesperson of Love Both Sinead Slattery said: “In the past six years, there has been a government Working Group on abortion, two sets of Oireachtas hearings, legislation in 2013, five Private Members’ bills in the Drill, a Citizens’ Assembly in 2017 and another round of Oireachtas Committee hearings also in 2017 – all without exception focussed on abortion and broadening the grounds for it.”

“Not one of these committees, assemblies or Private Members’ bills focused on alternatives to abortion,” Mrs Slattery said.

She added that instead of voting away the right to life and repealing the Eighth Amendment, Ireland should, as a society, be focusing on initiatives to bring people together, rather than divide them.

“In 2017, there were close to 30 homeless pregnant women living rough on the streets of our cities during 2017. This human suffering could be alleviated and suitable sheltered accommodation found, if the political focus were on alternatives to abortion rather than on obliterating all legal protection from unborn babies,” she said.
“For example, instead of bringing in abortion, we should be working together to make Ireland a pioneering centre of excellence for perinatal palliative care facilities to help families of babies with a life-limiting condition.”

She also pointed out that only five infants were presented for adoption in Ireland in 2016, despite the fact that hundreds of Irish couples are on waiting lists having been declared suitable to adopt a child.

“These are just some of the areas we could be focusing our energies on as a society, rather than following other countries down the road”, she said.