Sir, - Father Kevin Hegarty's views (Rite and Reason, March 13th) makes a lot of sense to me: "Going Back to the 1861 Act on Abortion could be the way forward for us." I campaigned vigorously for the 1983 pro-life referendum, not realising, like so many other people, that there was a loophole in its working which now makes abortion legal in this country through the 1992 X case.
The basic human right to life of the unborn is too precious a right to make it once again a matter of political football or intrigue. Abortion is never needed to save the life of the mother. No medical treatment is ever denied to a mother. The unfortunate death of the child in the womb as a side-effect of medical treatment given to a mother is quite distinct from an abortion, where a doctor deliberately kills an unborn child.
In my view, a referendum on a return to the 1861 Act is essential to make direct abortion illegal in this country and protect the life of the unborn. - Yours, etc.,
Dominic Johnson OSB, Glenstal Abbey, Murroe, Co Limerick.