Ireland to hold landmark vote on abortion
January 30, 2018
Ireland's government will give voters their first chance in 35 years to decide whether to repeal the country's restrictive abortion laws, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar announced on Monday.
A referendum on the divisive issue will be held at the end of May in the once-stridently Catholic country.
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What will this entail?
- Voters will be asked if they want to repeal the eighth amendment of the Irish constitution which guarantees the equal right to life of the mother and her unborn child.
- If the repeal is approved, Ireland's parliament will set a new law on abortion, which Varadkar said would be based on recommendations by an all-party parliamentary committee. The committee has called for terminations to be allowed without restriction up to 12 weeks into a pregnancy.
- The referendum will give voters under the age of 50 their first opportunity to decide on the issue.
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Varadkar hails decision
"We already have abortion in Ireland but it's unsafe, unregulated and unlawful and in my opinion we cannot continue to export our problems and import our solutions," the Irish prime minister said, referring to thousands of women who travel abroad for abortions.
"I believe that this is a decision about whether we want to continue to stigmatize and criminalize our sisters, our co-workers and our friends or whether we are prepared to take a collective act of leadership to show empathy and compassion," Varadkar added.
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Ireland at odds with rest of Europe: The Catholic country currently has the most restrictive laws on abortion in Europe. A termination is legal only in rare cares when a woman's life is in danger. The law was changed following public outrage at the death of a pregnant woman in 2012 who was refused an abortion.
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How Irish people get abortions right now: Thousands of Irish women currently travel abroad for abortions every year, mainly to England. Others use abortion pills to end their pregnancies.
How Ireland has modernized: The once powerful Catholic Church nowadays plays less of a vital role in Irish society, as witnessed by a 2015 referendum where Irish voters decided by a landslide in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage.
What's likely to happen: If the latest opinion polls are anything to go by, more than half of Irish voters would support a repeal of the abortion ban, with a 12 week limit. Two recent surveys found 51 percent and 56 percent support. However, pollsters say those against the repeal are more likely to cast their vote.
Age split: Pollsters have pointed to a sharp generational divide with a clear majority of voters over 65 opposed to lifting the ban.
What date: Varadkar said the referendum would take place by the end of May, after pro-choice campaigners called for the vote to be held before students and young people go traveling for the summer. The exact date will be finalized in the coming weeks.
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mm/aw (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)