Tuesday November 20 2012 | Week 10
S i n c e 1887 T h e U K ' s O ld e st S T u d ent N ews pa p er
“Keep your politics out of my uterus”
Jimena villar de onis
Jimena Villar de Onis Last Wednesday, protesters from the Edinburgh University Feminist Society (EUFS) rallied outside Merchant’s Hall as the Alliance of Pro-Life Students (APS) held its Edinburgh launch fundraiser. The Alliance of Pro-Life Students is a new organisation training and funding pro-life activism on campuses around the UK. APS is run by Eve Farren, former President of Bristol Students for Life, along with a team of graduate volunteers, amongst them alumni from the Edinburgh, Cardiff and Bristol groups. The keynote speaker at the event was Catholic nun Sr. Roseann Reddy of the Cardinal Winning Pro-Life Initiative. As the launch started and guests made their way inside the building, demonstrators assembled outside the entrance to spread their message. They held banners emblazoned with slogans such as, “Fuck off out my womb,” “Keep your politics out of my uterus,” “Antichoice is not pro-life” and “If you don’t trust me with a choice how can you trust me with a child?” They also carried coat hangers which, according to Aurora Adams, President of EUFS, represent the dangers of self-induced abortions. Farren, APS Executive Director, told The Student, “There are some very important debates to be had. Why is abortion permitted up until birth for the disabled? What about gender selective abortion? Is euthanasia really dying with dignity? “As young people, we need to be de-
bating these questions which concern the fundamental right to life. Universities, as hubs of debate on the tip of scientific discovery, are the ideal places for this discussion to rationally open up.” Naomi Beecroft, EUFS committee member, explained to The Student why these types of protests are important for society. She said, “We think we need to protest them because the rise in pro-life activism is really dangerous for women. We think that reproductive rights and bodily autonomy are really fundamental to women’s liberation and the mental and physical well being of women. “If women don’t have access to abortion which is free, safe and legal then they might be pushed into back alleys where facilities aren’t clean, aren’t free and aren’t legal.” Niall O’Coinleáin, committee member of the Edinburgh University Life Society, affiliated with the Alliance of Pro-Life Students, spent part of the night conversing with the protesters. Later he told The Student, “I feel it is so important that women who find themselves with a crisis or unplanned pregnancy are given real choice and support and the Alliance hopes to help empower Life Societies to do that.” The debate reached fever pitch last week after Savita Halappanavar, of the Republic of Ireland, died of septicemia and multiple organ failure after being denied an abortion. According to her doctors, because the 17-week-old foetus still had a heartbeat, an abortion was illegal despite the fact that, by the time Halappanavar died, she had been miscarrying for three straight days.
In the Republic of Ireland, abortion is illegal except where there is a real and substantial risk to the life, as opposed to the health, of the mother. About 2,000 protesters assembled outside the Irish parliament in Dublin on Wednesday evening to call for the Irish government to urgently reform the Republic’s abortion laws. Both groups agree that discussion is key to solving the issue, as Niall O’Coinleáin explained. He said, “I was very glad to see the protesters outside. Life issues and abortion in particular are often ignored or not thought about by people so it is encouraging to see so many people so passionate about them even if they do hold an opposing view. As I said earlier, debate and discussion requires both sides and we welcome the opportunity to engage with people that hold an opposing view point.” The protests were large enough to make the access to the pavement difficult for passers-by, although most of them seemed to be supporting the prochoice protestors. Chris, a 21-year-old graduate from the University of Edinburgh, told The Student, “I am happy to see that Edinburgh is out there to show solidarity and show that we are not going to have people pushing these kind of views in Scotland where women do have the right to choose what happens with their own body. I am happy to see people out protesting here today. “The fact that there [are] even people inside setting up a group that is pro-life at a time where it is women and not politicians who should be making these decisions over their own health frankly amazes me and saddens me.”
Jimena villar de onis
Jimena villar de onis
Alliance of Pro-Life Students launch beset by protest