Claims abortion ban violates human rights "ridiculous": PLC

Claims by a New York group, which advocates abortion that Ireland is in breach of its international human rights obligations because of its abortion ban are “ridiculous,” the Pro Life Campaign has said.

In a statement yesterday, spokesperson Dr Ruth Cullen said that the group, Human Rights Watch could not, “credibly claim to be a human rights organisation while at the same time denying the rights of unborn children throughout the entire nine months of pregnancy.”

“Any authentic vision of human rights has to include the right to life,” Dr Cullen said.  “Otherwise it is meaningless.”

The statement was in re sponse to a document, entitled A State of Isolation: Access to Abortion for Women in Ireland. released on Thursday, which claimed that is in breach of its international human rights obligations for not allowing legalised abortion.

Referring to UN statistics showing that Ireland is the safest country in the world in which to give birth, Dr Cullen said Ireland was, “a recognised world leader in providing medical care for women during pregnancy.”

She added that Human Rights Watch and other abortion advocacy groups needed to, “reflect on this reality instead of creating unnecessary fears about women’s health simply to have abortion imposed on Ireland.”

Dr Cullen also accused Human Rights Watch of being “in complete denial” about the latest peer reviewed studies showing the damaging psychological effects of abortion on women.

A number of recent studies have shown that of women who have abortions, a third are more likely to suffer from extreme mental health problems.  In 2008, the Royal College of Psychiatrists advised its members to alert patients to the possibly damaging of abortion on foot of these studies.

Women, she continued, deserve better, “from an organisation claiming to serve its best interests.”

Contrary to Human Rights Watch's assertion, seeking to protect both mother and baby during pregnancy was “not a violation of any human right,” Dr Cullen said.

She added, “In fact it is the complete opposite.  Abortion is legal up to birth in some countries.  Human Rights Watch supports these barbaric laws.  As a group, it even opposes laws prohibiting sex-selection abortions, specifically targeting female unborn children.  This alone completely undermines its claim to be a defender of women’s rights.  Rather than discriminating against certain categories of human beings, we need to work together to build a more welcoming society where the value and dignity of every human life, born and unborn, is respected.”

by Tom O'Gorman