Abortion update.
The state has hired a barrister to represent the rights of the fetus at tomorrow's challenge by a 17-year-old pregnant girl to a HSE decision to restrain her from travelling abroad for an abortion.
The High Court has heard that this latest development was requested by the Attorney General.
Lawyers for the AG yesterday told the court that they believed the HSE had no legal power to ask the Gardai to restrain a person simply because that person is the subject of a care order.
Today, the court was also told that the mother of the 17-year-old has been granted legal aid and will also be represented in tomorrow's proceedings. Her mother will also appear to back her in this case.
The High Court has heard that this latest development was requested by the Attorney General.
Lawyers for the AG yesterday told the court that they believed the HSE had no legal power to ask the Gardai to restrain a person simply because that person is the subject of a care order.
Today, the court was also told that the mother of the 17-year-old has been granted legal aid and will also be represented in tomorrow's proceedings. Her mother will also appear to back her in this case.
Labels: abortion.
posted by fatmammycat at 1:29 p.m.
18 Comments:
A number of years ago, when I was a nineteen-year old college student in UCC and in my first relationship I discovered I was pregnant and I knew immediately that the best option for me would be to seek an abortion. Thankfully I was a well-adjusted young woman, not easily swayed or cowed by the emotive language and disingenuous tactics used by the small but vocal band of pro-lifers on campus.
Unlike many others I suppose, I had the financial means to arrange the necessary with a London clinic. The distress of my situation soon turned to anger and frustration as I tried to overcome logistical obstacles and everything else in order to achieve an early abortion. I persisted because I knew that having the abortion would allow me to continue unimpeded with my studies and, more importantly, allow me the choice of delaying the rearing of children until I was, at the very least, living independently of my parents! Almost eight years later I am absolutely certain that I made the right decision.
I abhor the myths and lies frequently peddled by the pro-life brigade. These lies are often allowed to go unchallenged publicly because abortion is unquestionably an emotive issue for many people and, in recognition of this social reality, nobody who has had an abortion really wants to raise her hand in the air and start openly dispelling the myths.
However I would like to start by dispelling one such myth, namely that women are consumed by guilt and depression post-abortion. I'm sure most women who find themselves with an unplanned and unwanted pregnancy are depressed but after the abortion I was totally relieved and elated that the nightmare situation was over. That's not to say it's an easy decision to make, but it was definitely the right one for me.
A rather good friend of mind from back in the day found herself in the same position as you did, not in college mind, no, it was when her so called fiancé dumped her telling her he couldn't 'handle' the pressure of having a child and getting married and all that it entailed and he fled.
She agonised over the decision and in the end chose to terminate her pregnancy, cutting all her ties with that man, and I use the term loosly. Today that woman is happily married-not to that twat- with two much loved and much wanted children of her own and as far as I can tell she has never regretted her choice.
The pro-life people like to drum the beat of depression because it makes for a handy cudgel to beat women with, ''you will suffer' they say, 'you might kill yourself' and 'certainly you will regret it for the rest of your life', well, certainly some women do have regrets, and certainly some women do not. But it is the former they crow about and not the latter.
Hear, hear to both of your comments! Thanks goodness women have a choice.
Regarding the current debacle, doesn't the Attorney General have anything better to do than waste public money drawing out the case interminably and fucking with that poor girl's head.
I think it should be a matter for a woman and her doctor and the state should butt right out. It does not belong in the room.
I believe it's called covering their respective arses.
Tomorrow we'll see see what the lay of the land is.
Well said all. I think if men were the ones to have to go through pregnancy, childbirth, and these choices, abortion would be a 'god-given right,' and not even up for debate. I've said it before, they'd have one cramp and kill themselves.
Cat - I didn't mean to sound like I was calling you glib yesterday, I knew you weren't, but I'd heard that 'tooth-pulling' analogy before by a right-to-lifer and it triggered something deep and dark inside me. I apologize if I came of as being snippy towards you. Bad day, bad day.
God, what a stupid, horrible situation.
I had an abortion in Iceland, where it is neither illegal nor a taboo subject. While it was an emotional time for me, I was helped very much by everyone I came into contact with being entirely professional and supportive – my doctors, the nurses, the obligatory counsellor, and every other person I leant on at the time. I've never once ever ever had any regrets about the desicion and like Anonymous just felt a great sense of relief after it was all over.
I can't even begin to imagine what that poor girl is going through right now.
Don't apologise daring, you called it as you saw it, and I WAS being too glib, It was a stupid analogy that came with typing and not thinking properly as I typed.
Annie, it is a totally horrible situation, it's politics and those that should have Miss D's welfare at heart seem to have forgotten that she is a very young adult-who legally has a right to travel- being held prisoner by the state incubating a child that cannot survive against her will.
"Youth Defence spokesman Eoghan de Faoite said he found it "quite appalling that a child's life would be ended in such a violent way simply because that child might not live long after he or she is born". (Today's Irish Times)
What an enlightened, rational and humane individual. Interesting how he doesn't see it as appalling that a child (in the eyes of the law) should be forced to carry a baby to full term and watch it die. I suppose the fact that these people seemingly have God on their side usually helps.
Urgh, i heard this wally on the radio today, waffling on about how the 'girl' should know what abortion will do to her 'baby'.
Like carrying semi-headless fetus wasn't enough to traumatise her.
Yes well put FMC, urgh is exactly how I feel too!!
These SPUCer groups are so nauseatingly smug and self righteous. It must be wonderful to live in such a vacuum of self-importance and see the world so clearly in black and white with no grey areas whatsoever. Of course it means they never have to venture out of their own comfortable little nest and imagine for one second how it might feel to be in somebody else's (less fortunate) shoes like that poor girl.
These people are not good for my blood pressure.
The whole situation is utterly baffling. My heart really goes out to the poor girl - I can't even begin to imagine how you could handle all this.
Youth Defence are a pack of cunts who need a seriously good kicking.
I wonder what their defence to me smashing their faces in with a bat would be. Sanctimonious, pathetic cunts. I'd actually forgotten they existed and as such had been living my life in relative calm.
Fuck I really hate them.
Eoghan de Faoite - even the name sounds pretentious. There is no point trying to have an adult debate with such a smug fucker, some woman should just give him a good kick in the balls.
Here here shebah.
Urgh, i heard this wally on the radio today, waffling on about how the 'girl' should know what abortion will do to her 'baby'.
Like carrying semi-headless fetus wasn't enough to traumatise her.
I know, those wankers keep going on about how traumatic an abortion would be, as if the alternative isn't absolutely hellish. Of course, as others have said, they don't seem capable of any empathy at all, so we shouldn't be surprised that they can't imagine what this poor girl is going through.
Also, I was so pissed off about this on Tuesday that I mailed all the candidates in my constituency and asked (a) what they thought of the Miss D case and (b) whether they supported a speedy reform of Ireland's hypocritical and unfair abortion laws to better serve the 6000 women who have to go to the UK for an abortion each year. So far, only one has replied, a PD. She said she supported legislation in accordance with the '92 referendum but agreed that the laws were hypocritical. Of course, she didn't say that she or her Party would actually change that...
Of course not, politics you see, that might mean having to actually take a stand and be counted.
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