Medical Abortion in Ireland

A woman walks into a hospital in Ireland with complications resulting from a Medical Abortion.

She has just flown back from Britain where the aborifacients Mifepristone and Misoprostol have been legally administered by a licensed facility. She receives treatment and is fine.

Another woman purchases the drugs online and administers them according to instructions on the Island of Ireland. She also experiences complications, is treated in a hospital and is fine.

Will these women be questioned as to where the Medical Abortion was administered and be obliged to provide evidence of this?

Is it in the public interest to insist that this evidence is provided?

Is it in the public interest to prosecute the woman who administered the Medical Abortion in Ireland?

What would be an appropriate punishment if she was convicted?

Despite a UK ruling that both doses be administered in a licensed facility, this is likely to a conundrum for policy makers, enforcers of the law and pro-life activists in Ireland in the coming future.

It would seem I am not the first person to consider this issue as the drugs are advertised online. The issue has previously been considered in the ROI here and and in NI here.

The Irish Language

In light of recent movements to have the Irish Language removed from the list of compulsory subjects for Leaving Certificate takers in the Republic of Ireland it seems appropriate to comment.


One of the few joys of being in Vietnam for St Patrick's day this year will hopefully be the lack of 'Irish' people feeling the need to justify why they don't speak Irish. Insecurity seems to me to be an important motivation for people expounding on the irrelevance of the Irish language today. While Irish 'nationalism' has created a strong cultural identity in Ireland, not speaking the Irish seems to undermine it. Simply speaking Irish therefore undermines the 'Irishness' of others and hence the stoical defense of their own lives.


But insecurity is far from the only reason. If personal experience (ie education) of Irish is bad, and it often is, then abstract Celtic notions are unlikely to fill the void. Irish enthusiasts would do well to acknowledge this in their endeavours, as all governments should acknowledge that people generally don't like doing what they forced to do.


I do think the Republic of Ireland needs to address this issue, and making the langauge optional but attractive might prove to be a useful way of achieving progress. However, for those who wish the language dead, the significant role the language plays in the economy, arts etc should not be downplayed or ignored for the sake of your emotional insecurities.