Today Ireland, with the commitment and energy of its young people, has voted emphatically to overturn decades of shame, stigma, suffering and secrecy. This overwhelming majority means that women’s lives and health will be transformed for the better.
“We embrace this landslide vote for Yes. It shows that when the Irish people heard the lived reality of women through the courage of those who stepped up to tell of their experience, they understood the urgent need to remove the 8th Amendment and bring healthcare and compassion home,” said Jan Richards, Chairwoman of the Dublin Well Woman Centre.
The strength of the Yes vote gives the Oireachtas a clear mandate to enact legislation quickly to give effect to the will of the Irish people. This will allow GPs, women’s health clinics and hospitals to provide safe and regulated abortion services here in Ireland. Women who have been raped, women dealing with the diagnosis of a fatal foetal abnormality, women who know they are not ready or capable of being a parent or older women whose family may be complete, now have a choice and can access support and services at home.
It is also crucial that awareness of the more effective types of contraception, including LARCs, forms a key part of the legislative reaction to today’s result, as well as a strongly enhanced sexual health education.
“The Dublin Well Woman Centre has a 40+ year history of delivering contraception, sexual health and crisis pregnancy services to women. We welcome today’s result and we look forward to playing our part in continuing to transform women’s healthcare in Ireland, when the legislation is enacted,” concluded Alison Begas, Chief Executive of the Dublin Well Woman Centre.
Note to Editors: The Dublin Well Woman Centre was formed in 1977, with the aim of improving access for women in Ireland to contraception and pregnancy-related information and services. The DWWC brought a successful case to the European Court of Human Rights in the 1990s, which resulted in the right to give information on abortion to women. The organisation has three clinics in Dublin, and provides a wide range of women’s sexual and life-stage health services, including cervical screening. It is a registered charity.