In an article published on 8 August in the Irish Independent, Ellen Coyne wrote a piece which argued that ‘anti-immigration’ protests are ‘not based on solidarity’. In the piece, she contrasted this new ‘movement’ with other causes which have resulted in protests in Ireland. She mentioned the Gaza issue, but also interestingly discussed abortion as ‘one of the most long-standing protests and debates in Irish social history’. She observed that ‘both the pro- and anti-abortion movements are fuelled by people who are outraged at what they perceive to be the ill treatment of others’. She continued by noting that protests, implicitly pro-life and pro-abortion protests, are organised due to some kind of selflessness.
This was an interesting observation from Ellen Coyne, who as a journalist has been very strongly favourable towards abortion. Her articles and method have often provoked criticism, which in recent years led to a Press Council complaint being made against her due to her handling of a story about pro-life protests outside Limerick hospital. It was also notable that she used terminology like ‘pro- and anti-abortion’, rather than the more partisan ‘pro-choice’ and ‘anti-choice’ which are phrases too common in the lexicon of many Irish journalists.
It will be interesting to see how Ms Coyne reports on ‘exclusion zones’, which were signed into law by President Higgins in May but which require a ministerial order before becoming operational. Will she still stand up for the goodwill and solidarity expressed by pro-lifers? Will she use her pen to vindicate our rights to organise public events and vigils (both large and small) which espouse a pro-life message? Time will tell.
