In the Irish Constitution, the 8th amendment indicates a ban on abortion in Ireland. It recognises the right to life for any unborn child in the country. The 8th amendment came into effect and was signed into law on October 7th, 1983.
The eighth amendment equalises the right to life of a pregnant woman with that of an embryo or foetus. Essentially, it criminalises abortion in all cases except where the continuation of a pregnancy would result in death.
While the introduction of the legislation was only supported by the minority of political parties, the Catholic Church (obviously) supported the amendment and it was eventually passed with 67% in favour.
Following the same-sex marriage referendum in Ireland, the younger generation of the country have called for a referendum to repeal the eighth amendment, thus legalising abortion in Ireland. However, due to the restrictive influence of the Catholic Church upon the country’s politics, it is proving to increasingly difficult for the referendum to be taken seriously by the majority of Irish political parties.
Despite this, The Abortion Rights Campaign and pro-choice groups have joined together to gather signatures which will hopefully be successful in calling for the referendum. The Abortion Rights Campaign describes the eight amendment as an “archaic and dangerous law”. They outline the problems with the amendment as following;
- It affects the human rights of women in Ireland.
- It denies access to basic health care, which has forced 155,000 Irish women to travel abroad for abortions since 1980. As a result, these women are discriminated against.
- It criminalises those who are forced to self-administer abortion pills in Ireland.
- It does not represent the public opinion of the twentieth century Irish people.
As a female college graduate, I am a strong supporter of the ‘Repeal the 8th’ campaign in Ireland. This referendum is a necessity for our generation and the future of women’s rights in Ireland. This legislation is no longer supported or relevant in Ireland, and I believe it has remained a part of The Constitution of Ireland because of the ever authoritative Catholic Church and Irish people’s fear of moving away from it.
On The Abortion Rights Campaign website, you can sign the petition and help Irish women receive the rights they deserve:
