The Labour Party has called on the Government to ensure the automatic right of re-entry for non-national women who travel abroad for abortions.
The party was responding to reports that gardaí in Dublin were investigating two alleged incidents of back-street abortions carried out on immigrant women in the past two months.
The party's health spokeswoman, Ms Liz McManus, said back-street abortionists "only operate where there is climate of fear".
She said: "The real danger now is that back-street abortionists may be preying on non-national women, whose legal status in this country may be uncertain. Women in this situation who become pregnant and who may wish to have a termination are often fearful of travelling to the UK because of concern that they may not be readmitted to this country."
Ms McManus called on the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, to give a clear commitment that any women who travels outside of Ireland for any medical procedure will be readmitted to this country, regardless of her status.
In the Dáil this morning, Socialist Party TD Mr Joe Higgins called on the Government to introduce new abortion legislation in the interests of those who are "extremely vulnerable".
But Ms Audrey Dillon of the Pro-Life Campaign described the TDs call as "opportunistic and simplistic".
Ms Dillion said: "The focus instead should be placed on those responsible for actually performing the alleged abortions and their prosecution. In addition to showing no respect for the dignity and rights of the unborn children the reported abortions also put the health of the women involved in grave danger."
Fine Gael's spokeswoman on health, Ms Olivia Mitchell, said further cases of back-street abortions in Ireland will continue "unless the Government takes urgent steps to ensure that immigrant groups are fully integrated into Irish society, and receive all the protection that that affords".
A Romanian woman at the centre of one of the investigations is believed to have seen an advert for "gynaecological services" on a card in a city centre shop.
Ms Mitchell said: "If notice boards in ethnic shops are being used to offer these procedures, then the campaign must be focused on these outlets."
She said: "It is thoroughly unacceptable to allow a situation to occur whereby immigrant women are left at the mercy of back-street abortion practitioners because they are not familiar with the legal status of the procedure in Ireland."
