GESTIÓN EN SALUD PÚBLICA: Ireland to vote on abortion in 2018

Ireland to vote on abortion in 2018

Bioedge

Ireland to vote on abortion in 2018

by Xavier Symons | 30 Sep 2017 | 1 comment

Ireland will vote in 2018 on whether to keep its controversial constitutional abortion restrictions, which currently prohibit pregnancy terminations unless there is a real and substantial risk to the life of the mother.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar announced the 2018 referendum on Tuesday, saying that the issue requires “well-informed public debate” and “careful consideration by the people”.

While polls suggest that Irish voters are in favour of allowing abortion in cases of rape, there is a strong opposition to allowing abortion on demand. According to a 2015 Irish Times Poll, “where the public drew the line was in allowing abortion on request (67 percent against) or if sufficient financial or family supports are not in place (68 percent against)”.

Ireland is not the only jurisdiction having its abortion laws questioned. Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party said in its 2017 manifesto that it would seek to broaden access to abortion in Northern Ireland, where similar restrictions exist.

Most of us have an ambivalent attitude towards drug addicts. Can they stop? No, their will power is shot to pieces. Will you invite one home to dinner? No, he’s a drug addict. However inconsistent it might be, we manage to dismiss addiction as morally serious and stigmatize them at the same time.

The Massachusetts Supreme Court is due to hear a case on drug addiction which could have wide-ranging consequences. Julie Eldred, an addict, relapsed while on parole and was jailed. (See story below.) But jailing her was wrong, according to the Massachusetts Medical Society, because opioid use is a chronic illness, not a character defect.

The opposite point of view is represented by 11 addiction experts in an amicus curiae brief. They argue that “Most addicts quit and do so on their own. Addiction seems to be among the most spontaneously ‘remitting’ of all the conditions termed major mental disorders, which is a very inconvenient fact for the position that addiction is a ‘chronic and relapsing brain disease.’”

The outcome of the argument will have immense legal and social consequences. If the addict is helpless in the grip of his or her disease, punishment makes no sense. The whole criminal law would change. To be continued....