(LifeSiteNews) — A dozen babies were born alive after abortion procedures in Ireland in 2022 and died soon after birth.
The disturbing statistic was revealed by Ireland’s health authority in response to a parliamentary question from TD Ken O’Flynn, who says he struggled to procure the information.
“It is hard to fathom that babies are being born alive after abortions in Ireland and sadly you have to go round in circles just to get answers as to how the babies are treated once they come into this world,” said O’Flynn, Ireland’s Pro-Life Campaign reported.
“There needs to be a lot more openness surrounding the medical care given to or withheld from the babies in these appalling situations. The answer to my parliamentary question should serve as the beginning, not the end, of the flow of information,” he added.
Ten babies survived a short time after birth following abortion procedures in 2020, the Health Service Executive (HSE) reported, indicating similar figures for the years not covered by HSE’s public reports. The information was sourced from annual papers published by the National Perinatal Epidemiology Centre (NPEC).
The HSE said it does not keep track of national data on the care of babies born alive after abortion procedures, RTE reported.
“It is truly shocking to learn that so many babies have been born alive after abortion in Ireland and that there isn’t clarity about what so-called ‘comfort care’ means and what standard of medical care is being provided to these babies,” Pro-Life Campaign spokesperson Eilís Mulroy said.
She pointed out that the findings defy former Health Minister Simon Harris’ claim that TDs were “resorting to ‘shock tactics’ for raising concerns about babies being born alive after abortion and the care they might receive.”
“We now know that the concerns raised are grounded in harsh reality and should not have been dismissed,” Mulroy remarked.
“Indeed, in some cases, doctors subject unborn babies to feticide, a procedure involving a lethal injection in the baby’s heart, to make sure a baby near full-term is not born alive,” said Mulroy, referring to the standard practice of injecting a lethal dose of digoxin into the unborn baby’s head or heart for abortions past 22 weeks.
The pro-life activist stressed that the findings show late-term abortions are being carried out in Ireland, where abortions are legally unrestricted until 12 weeks’ gestation, after which they are only legal in the case of fatal fetal conditions or when there is “serious risk to the life or of serious harm to the health of a pregnant woman.”
She called upon Ireland’s government to practice “much more transparency and accountability on the questions and decisions surrounding late-term abortions.”
“The treatment of babies in these situations is first and foremost a humanitarian issue, which is why it must be brought into the light,” Mulroy said.
