Pro-choice activists have urged the Government to stop "stalling" on abortion and introduce legislation following last week's High Court decision granting a 13-year-old rape victim the right to travel to a British clinic. About 250 demonstrators marched through Dublin city centre on Saturday, calling for the urgent legalisation of abortion in line with the Supreme Court ruling in the X case.
Speaking at the event, Ms Ivana Bacik, Reid Professor of Criminal Law and Criminology at TCD, criticised the Government's decision to have the issue dealt with by a Green Paper and a protracted consultation process. "We don't want to rush into any hasty legislative wording but we also don't want a drawn-out process which will enable the Government to avoid dealing with the issue."
She felt relief and disgust at Friday's High Court ruling in the case. "We must feel disgust that a judge said that had she not been suicidal she would not have been allowed to travel. If the judge had not thought her life was at risk she would have been locked in a legal limbo in this country."
She added: "It is not just 13year-old suicidal rape victims who need abortions. Thousands of Irish women every year need abortions."
Ms Joan Williams, secretary of the Pro-Choice Campaign, which organised the event, said the ruling was a victory but "it shouldn't have been necessary".
It was "outrageous that this girl had two different legal teams representing her body - one for her and one for the unborn". The recently-formed campaign is planning further demonstrations in the coming months.
Another new campaign, the Dublin Abortion Rights Group, will hold a rally in the city next Saturday.
