With just three weeks to go until referendum day, campaigns are continuing on both sides of debate.
The LoveBoth campaign, calling for the Eighth Amendment to be kept, officially launched their tour bus this morning.
Katie Ascough at the launch of the LoveBoth bus at City Hall in Dublin, 05-05-2018. Image: Sam Boal/RollingNews
Spokesperson Katie Ascough said women in Ireland need to be supported better, however she said repealing the eighth is not the answer:
“Ireland does have one of the lowest rates of abortion in Europe,” she said. “We also have one of the lowest maternal death rates in Europe.
“Those are two things to be proud of.
“Is Ireland perfect? No and we absolutely should be supporting our women better in this country.”
She said she does not believe the answer to that is to introduce English-style abortion laws in Ireland.
The @loveboth8 campaign launched their tour bus this morning. They'll travel to all 26 counties calling for a 'No' vote in the referendum #8thRef pic.twitter.com/mavlf0Kb5p
— Andrew Lowth (@AndrewLowth1) May 5, 2018
Meanwhile, the pro-repeal Together For Yes group launched their ‘She lives on your street’ campaign.
The campaign aims to highlight the effect of the Eighth Amendment on women living on every street in every community across the country.
Mrs Brown’s Boys star Eilish O’Carroll says the campaign aims to promote solidarity with women in local communities who may need to get an abortion.
“We will support them, we will not judge them, we will show compassion and we will show care,” she said.
“I have no right to tell another woman what she should do or not do with her body or her life.
“We live in a very democratic society; we all have a right to vote but I would ask people, men and women, to think really strongly about what this issue is really about.
Mrs Browns Boys star @EilishOCarroll launching the @Together4yes 'She Lives On Your Street' campaign earlier today, standing in solidarity with women who have travelled to get an abortion. #8thRef pic.twitter.com/t3CdtBSlUZ
— Andrew Lowth (@AndrewLowth1) May 5, 2018
Together for Yes spokesperson Sarah Monaghan said the campaign stands in solidarity with women across the country who have had to make the difficult decision to have an abortion.
“These are the women that you know,” she said.
“They are the women in your lives who deserve your support by voting yes on May 25th.
“These are your sisters, they are your mothers, they are your colleagues, your friends and we really want to bring the argument back to that real lived experience of women here.”
