Thousands Rally to Change Ireland's Abortion Laws

Thousands gather in Dublin in memory of an Indian woman who died after being refused an abortion.

Published

6 months ago

Categories

World

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Europe

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Ireland, Dublin

Transcript

At least 5,000 people marched to the offices of Ireland's socially conservative prime minister on Saturday (November 17) to call for clearer guidelines on abortion following the death of a woman denied a termination. It was the largest of a wave of protests across Ireland in recent days in response to the death of 31-year old Indian woman Savita Halappanavar who died of septicaemia following a miscarriage 17 weeks into her pregnancy. The Irish health authority (HSE) has launched an inquiry into the death, which has reopened a decades-long debate over whether the government should legislate to explicitly allow abortion when the health of a mother is at risk. Activists in the overwhelmingly Catholic country, which has some of the world's most restrictive laws on abortion, say the refusal by doctors to terminate the pregnancy earlier may have contributed to Halappanavar's death. Members of Ireland's Indian community joined the demonstration. Irish law does not specify exactly when the threat to the life or health of the mother is high enough to justify a termination, leaving doctors to decide. Critics say this means doctors' personal beliefs can play a role.