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Irish President Michael D. Higgins signed the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act into law on Tuesday, making abortion legal in cases where the mother’s life is at stake.
Higgins said the passage of the law is a move toward “basic human rights.”
Deputy Prime Minister Eamon Gilmore said it was “a historic moment” for the women of Ireland.
“The core purpose of this legislation is about saving women’s lives. It is about providing for a very basic human right,” he said in a statement.
Catholic Church leaders, steadfast in their biblical interpretation of abortion, believe otherwise and continue to oppose any form of abortion.
The church sees the topic as a matter of sin and directly deems all abortions an outrage, reports said.
Irish bishops deemed the bill “a tragic moment for Irish society when we regard the deliberate destruction of a completely innocent person.”
The Pro Life Campaign said on Tuesday that the passing of the bill into law was “a very sad day for our country”.
The introduction of the legislation follows the case of an Indian woman who died in an Irish hospital after she was refused an abortion.
Among the “life-threatening conditions” under which an abortion would be permitted would be a threat by a woman to commit suicide if doctors refused a request to terminate her pregnancy.
Because the new law amends the Irish Constitution’s ban on abortion, critics of the measure are expected to pursue a challenge before the Supreme Court. The Constitution’s prohibition traces back to a British law from 1867.
Sources
Image: AFP/Fox News
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