> In article <7d9dc4b4-8391-428e-bf7a-2f1fd8f48347@
> 6g2000pbh.googlegroups.com>, elizabethfran
...@gmail.com says...
> > from yahoo today:
> > ..Thousands rally in Ireland after woman denied abortion dies
> > By Conor Humphries | Reuters – 25 mins ago....EmailShare0
> > Share0Print......DUBLIN (Reuters) - Thousands of people rallied
> > outside Ireland's parliament on Wednesday to demand strict abortion
> > rules be eased after a pregnant Indian woman repeatedly denied a
> > termination died in an Irish hospital.
> > Savita Halappanavar, 31, admitted to University Hospital Galway in the
> > west of Ireland last month, died of septicaemia a week after
> > miscarrying 17 weeks into her pregnancy.
> > Her repeated requests for termination were rejected because of the
> > presence of a fetal heartbeat, her husband told state broadcaster RTE.
> > Abortion remains an extremely divisive issue in Ireland, an
> > overwhelmingly Roman Catholic country which has some of the world's
> > most restrictive laws on medical terminations.
> > Despite a dramatic waning of the influence of the Catholic Church,
> > which dominated politics in the country until the 1980s, successive
> > governments have been loath to legislate on an issue they fear could
> > alienate conservative voters.
> > After several challenges, the European Court of Human Rights ruled in
> > 2010 that Ireland must clarify its position.
> > At least 2,000 people gathered for a candle-lit vigil to demand that
> > the government legislate to close a legal loophole that leaves it
> > unclear when the threat to the life of a pregnant woman provides legal
> > justification for an abortion.
> > "My reaction was outrage. Shame that this happened in my country,"
> > protester Emer McNally, 33, and six months pregnant, said. "It's scary
> > to think that medical treatment was denied."
> > The news of Halappanavar's death overnight sparked a wave of anger on
> > Irish social media, with more than 50,000 people sharing the Irish
> > Times's lead story on the issue on Wednesday.
> > The organizers of the Dublin protest said they expected a much larger
> > crowd at a weekend demonstration and called on people to protest at
> > Irish embassies around the world.
> > Prime Minister Enda Kenny, whose party has been criticized for delays
> > in introducing legislation to define in what circumstances abortion
> > should be allowed, offered condolences to the woman's family, but said
> > he could not comment further until an investigation into the death.
> > "X-CASE" BROUGHT COURT RULING
> > In 1992, when challenged in the "X-case" involving a 14-year-old rape
> > victim, the Supreme Court ruled that abortion was permitted when the
> > woman's life was at risk, including from suicide.
> > But an earlier constitutional amendment banning abortion remains in
> > place, leaving medical professionals to navigate a legal minefield
> > when treating pregnant women.
> > "What happened to this woman was nothing short of medieval,"
> > independent socialist member of parliament Clare Daly told the crowd.
> > "We can't let political cowardice kill another woman."
> > The government says it has been waiting for the recommendations of an
> > expert panel before fulfilling the European Court of Human Rights
> > demand for clarification. The panel's report was delivered to the
> > government on Tuesday.
> > In the absence of legislation, Irish women are forced to go abroad to
> > terminate their pregnancies, an option not open to seriously ill
> > mothers.
> > "It's very frightening. It makes me feel it's not a safe country in
> > which to have a baby," said Sinead O'Brien a 41-year-old holding a
> > placard saying 'Never Again'.
> > "There has been a groundswell of feeling all day. I think something
> > has to change."
> > (Reporting by Lorraine Turner; Editing by Michael Roddy
> Thanks, good points.
> Do you have a URL I can pass around to others on Twitter and Facebook?
