Abortion, autonomy and rights

One often hears those in favour of repealing the 8^th Amendment appealing to the ideas of autonomy and to rights. Women should be allowed to make decisions for themselves independently of others, so this argument goes, a right denied to them in Ireland at the moment, thanks to the 8^th Amendment.

This appeal to autonomy and to rights is of course attractive to many today. This philosophy, however, proves to be detached from human reality. As human beings we are by nature relational: we live in a network of relationships, whether for good or for bad.

The idea that pregnant women will become fully independent in their ability to make moral decisions if the 8^th Amendment is repealed lacks any reference to the pressure women can come under to have an abortion. This pressure will arguably be greater than at the moment since abortion will be readily available and there will less of an “excuse” for not availing.

The idea that pregnant women will become fully independent moral agents also ignores the fact that the abortion industry is precisely that – an industry. Its purpose is to make money and more abortions performed means more money. In some places where Planned Parenthood operates, it also means more body parts of aborted foetuses for sale.

This practice, and others, that have been uncovered in recent times in the abortion industry should be a cause of worry to everyone since they greatly undermine the independence of pregnant women at a time when they need love and support. They are certainly not designed to promote the happiness and well-being of the expectant mother.

One might note in passing that the sale of body parts for medical research indicates an implicit acceptance of the humanity of the aborted unborn. Other kinds of body parts would be useless for this purpose.

The only ones who exercise unrestricted freedom when it comes to abortion are rich and powerful lobbies who have a vested interest in abortion. We are all too aware of the huge amount of money that comes from abroad in order finally to establish an abortion regime in Ireland. Buying into the spurious notion of absolute autonomy will ensure that the Irish people hand over any influence they might have over future legislation.

The government’s proposal is for abortion up to twelve weeks but if the referendum is passed the Irish people will cease to have any say in the matter. Repeal of the 8^th Amendment will leave the door open for abortion throughout pregnancy in its entirety.

There are of course those who either doubt or deny the personhood and moral status of the foetus and therefore the right to life due to it. That fact itself, however, does not in itself warrant any kind of support for abortion any more than does the claim that at the point of conception a human being comes into existence and that, as a human being, it is has a right to life.

Both claims ought to be subjected to the rigours of reason informed by science. The scientific evidence is overwhelming: at conception a human being comes into existence. Those who support the so-called “right” to abortion must ignore this incontestable evidence.

At any rate, much abortion involves disposing of human life in the womb that is much more physically developed than it is at its first beginnings. Abortion is therefore a bloody and violent affair. Pro-repeal advocates must also ignore this fact.

The language of “embryos” and of “foetal life”, which we all use, serves to screen and to sanitize the reality of what some prefer to refer to as the “termination” of a pregnancy. It is precisely because of its violence, however, that women who have had an abortion can experience ongoing trauma at the realization of what has happened.

One wonders, in passing, how many abortion clinics offer support, including financial, to those who, after having succumbed to pressure to abort their child, suffer psychological trauma. The present reaction seems to be a denial that this painful reality exists.

So much for their commitment to women’s autonomy and rights! Retention of the 8^th Amendment will continue to protect mothers and their children.