Ireland’s Abortion Referedum
The predominantly Catholic country of Ireland had prohibited abortions through the Offenses Against the Person Act of 1861, and it became the law of the land in 1922 after Ireland separated from the United Kingdom. In the mid 1980s, anti-abortion activists within the Catholic Church in Ireland, worried about the liberalization movements in other European countries, crafted a Pro-Life Amendment Campaign. It was a bitter fight, with low voter turnout, but the Pro-Life Eighth Amendment passed and became part of the Irish constitution. As American social work professor Gretchen E. Ely wrote, the Catholic activists “began promoting the idea of making Ireland a model anti-abortion nation by enshrining an abortion ban not only in law but in the nation’s constitution.”
The twentieth century battles for and against abortion policies were acrimonious, with court cases filed, constitutional amendments proposed, and intense advocacy on both sides. In 1986, an Irish court ruled that even abortion counseling was prohibited. Medical staff were at times restricted in giving life-saving assistance during pregnancy emergencies. Like seen in the United States, there developed an “abortion trail,” with an estimated 170,000 pregnant Irish women traveling to England, European countries or to the United States from 1980 to 2018 to receive care.
But a devastating event became the spark that led to a complete reversal of Ireland’s abortion policy. A thirty-one-year-old woman, Savita Halappanavar, seventeen weeks pregnant, went to an Irish hospital, where doctors determined she was having a miscarriage. But because they could detect a fetal heartbeat, the fetus was protected by the Pro-Life Eighth Amendment. Savita and her husband pleaded with doctors to intervene, but they refused. The heartbeat eventually stopped, Savita developed a massive infection, her vital organs shut down, and she died after four days in intensive care.
In reaction to Savita Halappanavar’s tragic death and the growing activism of pro-choice Irish citizens, the Eighth Amendment in 2018 was repealed through a nationwide referendum. This was the largest turnout for any referendum in Irish history, with 64.5 percent of its citizens casting their ballots. Voters in thirty-nine of Ireland’s forty counties approved of the repeal and it passed by a two-to-one margin, 66.4 percent to 33.6 percent. The only people not supporting this referendum repeal were those voters over age sixty-five. As Health Minister Simon Harris, who supported the repeal, said upon hearing the results: “Under the Eighth Amendment, women in crisis pregnancy have been told to take the plane, take the boat; today we tell them, take our hand. Under the Eighth Amendment, women in crisis have been told you’re on your own. Today we say: we will stand with you.”
Following repeal of the pro-life amendment, legal abortions are now permitted during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy (84 days); after 12 weeks, abortions would be allowed only it the women’s life is at risk, there would be serious harm to her health, or circumstances might lead to the death of the fetus before birth. If under age eighteen, girls are encouraged to involve their parents or another supportive adult; if over sixteen, and the young woman does not involve an adult, a doctor can offer an abortion if he or she thinks the girl can understand the information and gives consent; if under sixteen, and the girl chooses not to involve an adult, then the doctor can offer an abortion only under exceptional circumstances. The abortion procedure costs would be covered by the Public Health Service.
As Professor Ely observes, “In contrast to the United States, Ireland is moving away from political control over private life. Now that Roe has been reversed and abortion may be illegal in much of the US, pregnant people could face forced pregnancy, suffering and even death—as was the case in Ireland prior to 2018.”
Sources: Gretchen E. Ely, “Abortion: The Story of Suffering and Death Behind Ireland’s Ban and Subsequent Legalization,” The Conversation, May 16, 2022, https://theconversation.com/abortion-the-story-of-suffering-and-death-behind-irelands-ban-and-subsequent-legalization-182812; “It’s Yes: Ireland Has Voted to Repeal the Eighth Amendment,” The Journal (Dublin), May 26, 2018, https://www.thejournal.ie/yes-ireland-votes-to-repeal-eighth-amendment-4034416-May2018/; “Unplanned Pregnancy,” Citizens Information Board (Ireland) https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/health/health-services/women-s-health/unplanned-pregnancy/.
