The 8th amendment(Mod warning in op)

sondagefaux wrote: »

If the constitution is changed to permit the Oireachtas to legislate for abortion in any manner it sees fit, what's to stop a future Oireachtas legislating for a ban on abortion in all circumstances?

Nothing.

If you go and read the reports of the Citizens Assembly, the Oireachteas Committee and the statements by the Taoiseach and Minister for health, you will see that this is precisely what we will be voting on come the referendum.

sondagefaux wrote: »

If the constitution is changed to permit the Oireachtas to legislate for abortion in any manner it sees fit, what's to stop a future Oireachtas legislating for a ban on abortion in all circumstances?

Are you guaranteeing me that there will never be a majority of TDs and Senators in favour of a ban on abortion in all circumstances?

How could you possible guarantee that?

At a minimum, the proposed change to the constitution needs to contain language which says that no law which prohibits abortion outright can be passed, guarantees the right to abortion up to 12 weeks and guarantees the right to abortions after 12 weeks in stated circumstances.

If it doesn't, if it simply repeals the current provisions, and permits the Oireachtas to legislate as it sees fit, what's to stop a future Oireachtas from taking an ultra-conservative position?

How would that meet the remit that the constitutional convention has handed down?

I don't just want the current constitutional provisions repealed, I want them replaced with guarantees that there is a constitutional right to abortion up to 12 weeks, with a guaranteed right to abortion after 12 weeks in stated circumstances.

You seem to misunderstand. The Citizens assembly and oireachtas committee did not reccomend putting time limits in the constitution at all. They reccomended legislation.

I find these arguments in favour of the status quo because a future government could do *insert scenario here* perplexing.

I could understand it if the status quo was 'ok'. But it isn't. For either side.

The 8th is not 'protecting the unborn' - it has led to the legalisation of abortion in certain limited circumstances in Ireland and wholesale exported the problem for foreign solutions. It has impacted on the provision of healthcare for women in ways the original framers hadn't considered. It has lead to death. It has led to forced feeding. It has lead to a brain dead women being kept artificially alive against the expressed wishes of her family. What's next? Someone being jailed for possession of an abortion pill? No government wants that. It will be a PR disaster of X proportions. The alternative is to simply not enforce the law. Think about that. A situation where a government quietly decides to simply ignore a law because they fear a backlash. It's GUBU territory. I honestly do not believe this is what the pro-life movement wanted or expected, but this is what happened and could continue to happen. Placing them very much in the position of being seen as 'women murderers'.

I remember when it first came in. Back when expensive flights made the old coach/ferry trip to the UK the only affordable option - and still women travelled. When it was possible to censor information - and they did censor. This was circumvented by a network of people in the UK ringing phone boxes at all hours of the day and night to supply some terrified woman with the information denied her They did prevent travel when they could as the X Case demonstrated to a horrified population. The right to travel was voted in by the electorate. Censorship of information was stopped by the will of the people. The X Referendum showed that there were circumstances when the Irish people did not believe a fetus had equal right to life as the woman or girl carrying it. The anger over Savita Halappanavar's unnecessary death forced the government to finally legislate for X . Personally, I think it is absolutely outrageous and an insult to both the electorate and the democratic process that successive government ignored the result of a referendum for so long but that is by the by.

The reality is the advent of cheap flights and abortion pills available on-line has rendered it an unworkable anachronism, information can be got on-line using a mobile phone. it's about as enforceable as that nonsense in the Constitution about recognising women's work in the home (less pension turned out to be the reward).

Voting to retain the 8th is a vote to keep the 'Irish solution' that isn't a solution at all. It's a fudge and a dodge. The longer it remains the more unworkable it becomes and the further and further it strays from the original intention. The longer it's there the more the pro-life movement will be seen as not pro-life but anti-women because women are speaking out They are detailing how the 8th has affected them. Forced them to travel. Forced them to carry a fetus to term knowing there will never be a living child. Forced them into unnecessary surgical procedures. Forced them to forgo vital medical treatment. Men are speaking out about the horror of watching their wives/ girlfriends/ daughters/ sisters going through State sponsored physical and mental torture and being helpless to do anything about it.

The 1980s are gone. We are no longer cowed by the Roman Catholic Church. We can no longer be kept uninformed. We can no longer be kept 'at home'. We can no longer be kept compliant by the threat of the Laundries. We can no longer be silenced. It's a different Ireland and we need a Constitution fit for purpose. The 8th will be repealed - it's just a question of when.

If you want really want to prevent abortions campaign for free contraception. Demand proper sex education. Work to eliminate some of the 'reasons' like poverty, lack of affordable childcare, housing shortages, maternity pay linked to working income, paid parental leave for partners etc. Make it easier for women to have their children. Support mothers in their daily needs. Be pro- life not fixated on being pro-birth. There will still be abortions but many of the reasons women feel they have no other option will be eliminated and choosing to have a child would no longer be a crises for many.

sondagefaux wrote: »

Why would it have to be elected on such a platform?

People vote for parties for multiple reasons in general elections.

There's no way for certain that you can know what a future Oireachtas, if it has carte blanche to legislate on abortion, will do.

The only way to be certain that the general public get to decide on abortion is to insert clauses into the proposed amendment to the effect that abortion cannot be made illegal up to 12 weeks and to specify the reasons why it remains legal after 12 weeks.

That goes for anything, not just abortion. You can't put clauses nonsense in the constitution based on what you think might happen. We've seen the result of that already.

sondagefaux wrote: »

Well now that someone on boards has said so, I'm completely reassured... :rolleyes:

You don't have to be completely reassured.

If a socially conservative party materialises, and gains enough support to have major representation, and propose change in legislation, then so be it. If that's the will of the people, then who are we to stand in the way of that democracy.

I doubt it will happen. The same way no parties have stood on a "Repeal Divorce" platform. The same way no parties have stood on a "Repeal SSM" platform. The same way no parties have stood on a "Give up work when you get married" platform.

applehunter wrote: »

I'm pro choice.

Vote No

Save the 8th

How is that pro-choice?

Loafing Oaf wrote: »

I think he/she is mocking amdublin for saying he/she is pro-life and favours repeal of the 8th.

Indeed. Those who have no actual rebuttal are forced to resort to mocking.

rainbow kirby wrote: »

It's possible to be personally pro-life and favour repealing the 8th based on its impact on maternity care in continued pregnancy. It's not just abortion.

That was the position of the Church of Ireland back in 83 - anti abortion and anti 8th.

sondagefaux wrote: »

There's no way for certain that you can know what a future Oireachtas, if it has carte blanche to legislate on abortion, will do.

And there's no way of knowing that a future government won't make female genital mutilation mandatory. But call me Mr. Complacent, I'm satisfied we don't need an article in the constitution specifically ruling that out...

sondagefaux wrote: »

Why would it have to be elected on such a platform?

People vote for parties for multiple reasons in general elections.

There's no way for certain that you can know what a future Oireachtas, if it has carte blanche to legislate on abortion, will do.

The only way to be certain that the general public get to decide on abortion is to insert clauses into the proposed amendment to the effect that abortion cannot be made illegal up to 12 weeks and to specify the reasons why it remains legal after 12 weeks.

The citizens assembly and oireachtas committee reccomended against this. The cabinet accepted most of the reccomendations of both. Therefore this is an irrelevant debate. The proposed constitutional change will not include specific time limits.

sondagefaux wrote: »

The Supreme Court held decades ago that the Constitution guarantees a right to bodily integrity.

https://www.ihrec.ie/download/pdf/ihrec_human_rights_explained.pdf

Here's a summary of the case (Ryan v Attorney General) which decided that the Constitution contained an unenumerated right to bodily integrity:

http://lenus.ie/hse/bitstream/10147/237766/1/FlourideSupplementArt7.pdf

Yeah ok but still. This is all irrelevant. The referendum is NOT going to be placing any time limits in the constitution.

Charmeleon wrote: »

Just catching up to lol at this post. I can actually feel the fundamentalism.

Fundamentalists do not tend to engage in open and honest debate and discourse. Which I was doing. You..... not so much. So I suggest perhaps the use of a mirror before you fling labels around that you do not seem to even understand the meaning of. Because the reason you can "feel" it, is it is in YOU.

You will find actually addressing my points a little more challenging than merely dodging them, ignoring them, and laughing at them though.

As another user already said....

Bannasidhe wrote: »

Indeed. Those who have no actual rebuttal are forced to resort to mocking.

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

No protection up to 12 weeks, then abortion only for medically necessary cases after that.

That is a proposal. It is not guatanteed to pass the Oireachtas.