16.03.2014: News Release: CRR intervention on abortion ‘insensitive and hurtful’ says Pro Life Campaign

16.03.2014: News Release: CRR intervention on abortion ‘insensitive and hurtful’ says Pro Life Campaign

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For the second time in a matter of months, the New York based Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) has filed a case before the UN’s Human Rights Committee alleging that it amounts to ‘cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment’ for Ireland to deny abortion in situations where an unborn baby has a terminal illness.

The most recent case, filed last Thursday by CRR, also claims the human rights of the women involved were infringed due to the fact that they were unable to access abortion in this country.

Commenting on the cases sponsored by the CRR, Pro Life Campaign spokesperson Cora Sherlock said:

“It is insensitive and incredibly hurtful to families who have or had babies with life shortening conditions to have to repeatedly listen to the Center for Reproductive Rights describe their children as ‘unviable’ or ‘incompatible with life.’ It is also misleading to say that a pregnancy is ‘unviable’ as we can never know for certain the accuracy of the diagnosis, given that there are so many stories of misdiagnosis or children living much longer than expected.

“As an international abortion advocacy group, the CRR has no credibility in the area of human rights. CRR campaigns for abortion on request for the full nine months of pregnancy and has even opposed attempts to prohibit abortion on grounds of race or gender.

“We need a proper debate in this country about the needs of families whose babies are terminally ill, not the hijacking of the debate by groups like CRR whose aim is ensuring abortion up to birth without any restrictions.”

ENDS