LoveBoth release video to mark Down Syndrome Day; USI announce support for repeal campaign
The Eighth Amendment has ensured a culture of respect for people with disabilities in Ireland, unlike that which exists in other countries,the LoveBoth project has said this evening.
Launching a new video to mark World Down Syndrome Day, spokesperson for the LoveBoth project Maeve O’Hanlon said the video tells the story of Carina and her son Benjamin who has Down syndrome.
"Their experience is that of many families all over Ireland – where children with conditions like Down syndrome are given equal protection under our law thanks to the Eighth Amendment which doesn’t discriminate between babies in the womb in any way.
"Unfortunately, this isn’t the case in many countries throughout the world, such as Britain where 9 out of 10 babies diagnosed with the condition in the womb are aborted.
“Today is a day that celebrates diversity and equality in Ireland. It’s a time for us to reflect on the ways we can work on improving outcomes for people with Down syndrome and enable them to fulfil their potential in every area of life.”
Meanwhile, the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) have announced it is supporting the national civil society campaign, Together For Yes, to remove the Eighth Amendment from the Constitution in order to protect women's safety, health and wellbeing.
The USI said that in the months ahead it will be registering thousands of students to vote ahead of the proposed date of May 25th.
Speaking about the launch, USI President Michael Kerrigan said, students are willing to show compassion by voting ‘Yes’ so people can make personal and private decisions without the fear of being charged as criminals.
"We must remove the Eighth Amendment, and we must accommodate students to vote. Students are overwhelmingly in favour of changing our restrictive abortion laws to become a country that values dignity and respect of people.”
“We are on the right side of history, and we’re bringing hundreds of thousands of students along with us”, Mr Kerrigan said. "Together we will vote ‘Yes’ to remove the Eighth Amendment.”
USI is the national representative body for the 374,000 students in third level education on the Island of Ireland.
