John Halligan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Two weeks ago on Leaders' Questions, I brought this issue up during a visit to the House by a number of women who then held a press conference in the hotel across the road. They got together and produced a booklet entitled, A Family's Journey of Torture, in which 35 women related their stories of fatal foetal abnormalities. If one listened to their stories and what they go through, one could not but be shocked to the core. We have spoken a great deal over the past number of weeks about compassion and crises of conscience. We should all reflect on the crisis of conscience some of these women faced when they were told the foetus in their womb was incompatible with life and it could have a traumatic psychological effect on them if they went through with the birth. Inevitably, a substantial number of them, not all, made decisions that they would be unable to do this and they asked for compassion and help from the State but they did not get it. All of them had to leave the country under dreadful circumstances, some without their families and loved ones. They faced a terrible journey to Liverpool and an even worse journey back.

I find it incredible that we would treat human beings in such a barbaric fashion. During Leaders' Questions, I told a story about a woman who was due to attend the House that day but who broke down outside the gates and had to be brought home. Her story was horrifying. She said she decided to go through with the birth against advice because the foetus was severely deformed. It suffered from encephalopathy. When she gave birth, the baby died within 12 minutes and to the present day, she has nightmares and she is psychologically traumatised. That was her choice but it is not the choice of many women who are told this may be the case if they decide to proceed with the birth. This affects between 1,400 and 1,500 women a year, which is not a tiny minority. All the medical evidence points to this having a lifelong effect on their quality of life, their sex lives and how they view children, and we are saying to those women who are psychologically unable to go through with the pregnancy that we cannot do anything for them but something can be done for them in England. We agree that in England they should be able to do something and we say we have compassion for them here. That is appalling and outrageous.

I have some sympathy for the Minister and the Government given how difficult it is to bring in this restrictive legislation. He gave a commitment years ago that he would something about Article 40.3.3o. He met a group of these women and they openly said he showed great compassion and he was visibly upset. Why would he not be, given all of us were upset when we met them? As previous speakers said, at this stage they need help, not compassion. We cannot continue to ignore such a substantial number of women. We are leaving hundreds of women in the State traumatised for the rest of their lives because we will not give them the choice, which is a compassionate choice.

I refer to amendment No. 11 and inevitable miscarriage. Pregnancy is not a benign condition. Young women who went to full term where the baby did not survive had significant damage done to their lives. I have met women who, having gone through the pregnancy, were physically damaged. I acknowledge the Minister will not accept any amendments at this stage but I believe him to be a compassionate man and he has also met these women. Even if he were to give hope to them that in the near future. I am not putting this up to the Minister on the basis of how I will vote for the Bill because I will support the Bill, whether he makes this amendment or not. The Minister for Justice and Equality practically said it should be made earlier. However, I appeal to the Minister, Deputy Reilly, to give some help and some hope to these women and to the 1,400 women who will face the same torment next year and the year after that. We cannot allow this to continue.

The European Court of Justice has commented on this and we cannot allow these women to continue to suffer like this and to allow them to be tortured, which is what is happening to them. This is why they have called their document, A Family's Journey of Torture. I appeal to the Minister on behalf of the thousands the women in Ireland to whom this has happened and the thousands to whom it will happen to deal with this serious issue in the near future and not to treat them in such a barbaric fashion. We should have compassion for them in this State. We should say to them that this is wrong and we think they should not have to go through this, not that we cannot help them and they must go to England.

See this speech in context