Referendum to abolish the abortion ban in Ireland in 2018

In the referendum to abolish the abortion ban in Ireland in 2018 , the Irish people voted on May 25, 2018 on the amendment of the eighth Amendment to the Constitution of the Republic of Ireland . So far, this has stipulated that the fetus has the same right to life as the mother and thus prohibited abortions in almost all cases, unless the mother's life would be endangered by the pregnancy. With a turnout of 64.13 percent, 66.40 percent of the voters approved the proposed constitutional amendment. This made it the Irish Parliament allows abortions to legalize. On December 13, 2018, parliament approved a bill that allows abortions up to the twelfth week of pregnancy and beyond for certain medical reasons.

prehistory

Ireland had one of the strictest abortion laws in Europe. Abortion was punishable even after rape , incest, or a sick fetus . As a result, thousands of women flew to neighboring Britain each year to have an abortion. This strict legislation was due to the British Parliament's Offenses Against the Person Act in 1861 , which provided for life imprisonment for abortions and which continued in effect after Ireland became independent. In 1983, the ban on abortion was confirmed again in a referendum on the 8th Amendment to the Constitution and the fetus was granted the same right to life as the mother, so that abortions are only permitted if the life of the pregnant woman is in danger. In two further referendums in 1992, the 13th and 14th amendments to the constitution explicitly guaranteed pregnant women the right to go abroad and to obtain information or procedures there within the framework of the legal provisions applicable there. Ultimately, with these claused amendments to the constitution, pregnant women were guaranteed the possibility of legal abortion abroad, which radical opponents of abortion had wanted to criminalize. The law of 1861 was only abolished in 2013 after a court ruling and replaced by the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act , which allowed women in Ireland to have abortions if they had suicidality , which must be certified by an expert opinion.

In 2012, 31-year-old Savita Halappanavar died as a result of a late abortion that resulted in blood poisoning and death a week later. Halappanavar suffered from health problems and her doctors judged that the fetus was not viable and that it was an incipient miscarriage . However, she was denied the abortion because the fetus's heartbeat could still be heard. This fueled the public debate on Irish abortion law.

In 2016, the UN Human Rights Council called the fact that Irish women who knew their unborn child would not survive are forced to seek abortion overseas "cruel, inhumane and degrading".

In September 2017, the Irish government announced that it would hold a referendum in 2018. In January 2018, the Irish cabinet set May as the date for the referendum. Prime Minister Leo Varadkar supported the call for a more liberal abortion law, as the previous one was too restrictive in his opinion.

Proposed amendment to the constitutional amendment

The provisions of the 8th Amendment to the Irish Constitution (Article 40.3.3º) have been as follows:

The state recognizes the right of the unborn to live, with due regard for the mother's life, and it guarantees in its laws that this right will be respected and, as far as practicable, be defended and protected.

This sub-paragraph may not restrict freedom of movement between this state and another.

This section must not restrict the freedom in this state, in accordance with the legal provisions, to obtain or make available information relating to services that are legally available in another state.

The proposed change to be voted on was as follows:

Provisions on termination of pregnancy can be regulated by law.

Proposed legislation

The Irish Ministry of Health published a paper on March 9, 2018 on a possible legal regulation on abortion. The bill, which is not the direct subject of the referendum, stipulated that abortions could be performed up to the twelfth week of pregnancy without giving any reason. In addition, abortions would be permitted in the event of a health hazard to the mother, medical emergencies or serious health damage to the fetus that would result in miscarriage or death shortly after birth. The latter required a medical evaluation by two doctors.

Attitudes of the parties represented in parliament

Posters in Dublin

Posters in Dublin

The following parties represented in Parliament supported an amendment to the eighth Amendment:

• Irish Labor Party
• Green party
• Social Democrats
• Sinn Féin

None of the parties represented in parliament explicitly rejected an amendment to the eighth supplementary article.

The following parties represented in parliament did not recommend voting:

• Fine Gael
• Fianna Fáil

Opinion polls

date	Survey institute	Number of respondents	Yes	No	Unent. A.	head Start
May 16, 2018	Red C / Sunday Business Post	1,015	56%	27%	17%	29% p C
15th May 2018	Ipsos MRBI / Irish Times	1,200	44%	32%	17%	12% p
15th May 2018	Behavior & Attitudes / The Sunday Times	935	52%	24%	19%	28% p
April 30, 2018	Millward Brown / Sunday Independent	1.003	45%	34%	18%	11% p
April 25, 2018	Red C / Sunday Business Post	1,000	53%	26%	19%	27% p
17th April 2018	Behavior & Attitudes / The Sunday Times	928	47%	29%	21%	18% p
17th April 2018	Ipsos MRBI / Irish Times	1,200	47%	28%	20%	19% p
March 22, 2018	Red C / Sunday Business Post	1,000	56%	26%	18%	30% p
March 13, 2018	Behavior & Attitudes / The Sunday Times	900	49%	27%	20%	22% p
13th Feb 2018	Behavior & Attitudes / The Sunday Times	926	49%	30%	21%	19% p
25th Jan 2018	Red C / Sunday Business Post	1.003	60%	20%	20%	40% p
25th Jan 2018	Ipsos MRBI / Irish Times	k. A. B	56%	29%	15%	27% p
5th Dec 2017	Ipsos MRBI / Irish Times	1,200	62%	26%	13%	36% p

Notes: ^A undecided, ^B number of respondents not stated, ^C percentage points

Results

Results in the individual constituencies

Results card (percent yes votes)

choice	be right	%
Yes	1,429,981	66.40
No	723.632	33.60
Valid votes	2,153,613	99.72
Invalid votes	6,042	0.28
Votes cast	2,159,655	64.13
Eligible voters	3,367,556	100

Results of the referendum by constituency

Constituency	Eligible voters	Voters	Wahlbe- pation	Invalid votes	Valid votes	Yes votes	No votes	% Yes	% No.
Carlow-Kilkenny	112,704	69,860	61.99	231	69,629	44.211	25,418	63.50	36.50
Cavan-Monaghan	091,602	58,067	63.39	163	57.904	32,115	25,789	55.46	44.54
Clare	083,225	53,576	64.37	169	53,407	34,328	19,079	64.28	35.72
Cork East	085,643	54,639	63.80	148	54,491	34,941	19,550	64.12	35.88
Cork North-Central	084,412	52,713	62.45	166	52,547	33,639	18,908	64.02	35.98
Cork North-West	068,830	45,379	65.93	131	45,248	27.194	18,054	60.10	39.90
Cork South-Central	087,524	58,407	66.73	198	58.209	40,071	18,138	68.84	31.16
Cork South-West	060,356	40,648	67.35	114	40,534	26,147	14,387	64.51	35.49
Donegal	118.901	67,839	57.06	189	67,650	32,559	35.091	48.13	51.87
Dublin Bay North	108.209	77,481	71.60	154	77,327	57,754	19,573	74.69	25.31
Dublin Bay South	078,892	43,343	54.94	126	43,217	33,919	09,298	78.49	21.51
Dublin Central	048.002	24,732	51.52	79	24,653	18,863	05,790	76.51	23.49
Dublin Fingal	095,926	67,519	70.39	156	67,363	51,840	15,523	76.96	23.04
Dublin Mid-West	071,558	48.157	67.30	127	48.030	35.192	12,838	73.27	26.73
Dublin North West	062,270	39,079	62.76	113	38,966	28,477	10,489	73.08	26.92
Dublin Rathdown	064,887	45,491	70.11	117	45,374	34,529	10,845	76.10	23.90
Dublin South-Central	076,914	45,843	59.60	112	45,731	34,201	11,530	74.79	25.21
Dublin South West	106,588	73.096	68.58	153	72,943	54,642	18.301	74.91	25.09
Dublin West	067,138	45.502	67.77	113	45,389	33,595	11,794	74.02	25.98
Dun Laoghaire	095,372	65,348	68.52	152	65,196	50,243	14,953	77.06	22.94
Galway East	069,631	44.192	63.47	121	44,071	26,525	17,546	60.19	39.81
Galway West	107,726	64,529	59.90	201	64,328	42,422	21,906	65.95	34.05
Kerry	111.108	69,345	62.41	209	69,136	40,285	28,851	58.27	41.73
Kildare North	085,587	54,571	63.76	114	54,457	40,058	14,399	73.56	26.44
Kildare South	063,190	38,758	61.34	112	38,646	27.307	11,339	70.66	29.34
Laois	063,860	39,602	62.01	106	39,496	24,232	15,264	61.35	38.65
Limerick City	077,836	48.263	62.01	153	48.110	32,169	15,941	66.87	33.13
Limerick County	067,592	42.214	62.45	122	42.092	24,448	17,644	58.08	41.92
Longford-Westmeath	089,665	53,172	59.30	183	52,989	30,876	22,113	58.27	41.73
Louth	106.184	69,968	65.89	206	69,762	46,429	23,333	66.55	33.45
Mayo	091,377	56,735	62.09	161	56,574	32,287	24,287	57.07	42.93
Meath East	067,755	44,456	65.61	118	44,338	30,686	13,652	69.21	30.79
Meath West	065,651	41,319	62.94	126	41,193	26,343	14,850	63.95	36.05
Offaly	066,120	42,788	64.71	099	42,689	24,781	17,908	58.05	41.95
Roscommon-Galway	063.158	41,497	65.70	111	41,386	23,677	17,709	57.21	42.79
Sligo-Leitrim	095,954	58,604	61.08	189	58,415	34,685	23,730	59.38	40.62
Tipperary	113,546	72,485	63.84	238	72,247	42,731	29,516	59.15	40.85
Waterford	083.107	53,435	64.30	123	53,312	37.016	16,296	69.43	30.57
Wexford	110.494	73.220	66.27	216	73.004	49,935	23,069	68.40	31.60
Wicklow	099,062	73,783	74.48	223	73,560	54,629	18,931	74.26	25.74
total	3,367,556	2,159,655	64.13	6,042	2,153,613	1,429,981	723.632	66.40	33.60

implementation

Following the success of the referendum , on December 13, 2018, the Irish Parliament approved a bill that would allow legal abortions up to the twelfth week of pregnancy and later for certain medical reasons.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Volksstimme Magdeburg: Irish people vote on abortion. Retrieved May 24, 2018 . 
2. ↑ Neue Zürcher Zeitung : Irish Parliament legalizes abortions , December 14, 2018.
3. ↑ Before the referendum - Irish decide on the right to abortion . In: Deutschlandfunk . ( deutschlandfunk.de [accessed on May 24, 2018]).
4. ↑ Referendum results 1037 - 2015. (pdf) Department of the Environment, Community and local Government, August 23, 2016, accessed on May 25, 2018 . 
5. ^ Ralf Sotscheck: Abortion ban in Ireland: Faith saved, patient dead . In: The daily newspaper: taz . November 15, 2012, ISSN  0931-9085 ( taz.de [accessed on May 24, 2018]).
6. ↑ Ireland abortion ban subjected woman to suffering and discrimination - UN experts. UNHRC, July 9, 2016, accessed May 26, 2018 . 
7. ↑ Dublin: Ireland holds referendum on abortion. ZEIT ONLINE, accessed on May 24, 2018 . 
8. ^ Constitutions of Ireland. Verassungen.eu, accessed on May 27, 2018 (in the original English text:
   The State acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right.
   This subsection shall not limit freedom to travel between the State and another state.
   This subsection shall not limit freedom to obtain or make available, in the State, subject to such conditions as may be laid down by law, information relating to services lawfully available in another state. ). 
9. ↑ Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2018. Oireachtas , accessed on May 25, 2018 (English, original text: Provision may be made by law for the regulation of termination of pregnancy. ). 
10. ↑ Ireland votes on progressive abortion law in May. Radio Dreyeckland , accessed on May 25, 2018 . 
11. ^ Policy Paper on Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy. Ministry of Health of Ireland, accessed May 25, 2018 . 
12. ↑ Referendum in Ireland: End of "Abortion Tourism"? In: The press . ( diepresse.com [accessed on May 24, 2018]). "
13. ↑ Sinn Fein: No freedom of conscience when voting on abortion . ( kath.net [accessed on May 24, 2018]).
14. ↑ Referendum in Ireland: End of "Abortion Tourism"? In: The press . ( diepresse.com [accessed on May 24, 2018]). "
15. ↑ Ben Kelly: Ireland abortion referendum: Repeal the eighth campaign maintains lead as Irish are urged to come 'Home To Vote' . April 29, 2018. 
16. ↑ General Election Opinion Poll - January 2018 - Red C . February 5, 2018. Archived from the original on February 5, 2018.
17. ↑ Referendum on the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2018. referendum.ie, accessed on May 26, 2018 . 
18. ↑ Neue Zürcher Zeitung : Irish Parliament legalizes abortions , December 14, 2018.