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Proposed change to Irish constitution "attack on innocent human lives"
Westminster, 4 October 2001--The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), Europe's oldest pro-life organisation, has described a proposed amendment to Ireland's constitution as an attack on innocent human lives.The Twenty-Fifth Amendment of the Constitution Bill defines
abortion as the intentional destruction of human life "after
implantation in the womb of a woman".
John Smeaton, SPUC's national director, said: "An individual
human life does not begin at implantation but at fertilisation. Not
only is this agreed by the world's most respected medical and
scientific sources, but it is taught by the Catholic Church, Ireland's
predominant faith.
"This amendment is an attack on innocent human lives, not least
because it will lead to the legitimisation of morning-after pills which
can fatally attack early embryos by preventing them from implanting in
the mother's womb.
"If we abandon human embryos before they implant in the womb,
the whole pro-life argument is seriously undermined. To draw the line
anywhere other than at fertilisation is to succumb to anti-life
arguments. The embryo is just as entitled to protection from abortion
in the first eight days as it is in the first eight to nine months.
"SPUC's stand in defence of pre-implantation embryos in the UK has considerable public support. Our campaign on the morning-after pill is gathering speed, not least because of the concerns of parents, doctors and pharmacists."
