The Pro Life Campaign has called on Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to meet women who say the three-day waiting period before abortion gave them time to reconsider their decisions and continue their pregnancies.
The request comes as the Oireachtas Health Committee examines Sinn Féin’s Bill to abolish the waiting period.
A fortnight ago, several women shared their personal experiences at an event in Dublin, after their request to give evidence before the Health Committee was rejected.
In its letter to the Minister, the Pro Life Campaign stressed that these women’s experiences are directly relevant to the debate and deserve to be heard.
The Campaign also highlighted HSE figures showing that more than 10,000 women attended an initial abortion appointment over five years but did not return after the waiting period. While not all of these women continued their pregnancies, the PLC said there was little doubt that a very significant number did.
The letter questioned how proposals to abolish the three-day wait could advance without consulting women who personally experienced its impact.
The Pro Life Campaign has offered to facilitate the meeting and urged the Minister to hear these women’s stories firsthand before any further consideration of the Bill takes place.