Bogus counsellors show women graphic videos of abortions

GARDAÍ are powerless to halt the activities of a number of rogue counselling agencies engaged in intimidating women who have crisis pregnancies.

Agencies which purport to offer general advice to pregnant women, are, in fact, anti-abortion activists, according to a study conducted by the Crisis Pregnancy Agency.

The author of the study, Catherine Conlon, said: “My conclusion is that their sole focus is to prevent women from accessing abortion services through manipulation and intimidation.

“The gardaí are powerless unless a woman comes forward and makes a complaint,” she said. “Because these bogus agencies do not offer the option of abortion advice, they are not governed by the Abortion Information Act and are, therefore, unregulated.”

According to the study, the agencies give women spurious information about abortion procedures and have even told some women that an abortion will give them cancer.

One woman who contacted a bogus agency was interviewed in a windowless basement room by a man who showed her a video of an abortion and photos of an aborted foetus.

“I was kept in this small room for two hours,” said the woman. “They talked about religious reasons for me not having an abortion and how wrong it was.

"I was to go back to them but they kept putting me off although I rang them three or four times a week for 12 weeks. Eventually, it was too late for a termination. It was a horrible experience.”

Ms Conlon says this is a typical tactic by the bogus counsellors. “Women in this situation are very vulnerable. They withhold information and string them out until it is too late for an abortion.”

The report, which looked at the experiences of 400 women, suggested an ‘Ethic of Care’ which would involve the development of a comprehensive policy and regulatory framework.

The research, which got the views of women who attended a cross-section of services, including those recognised and funded by the agency, found over half the women who had an abortion had counselling compared with less than one fifth of those continuing with motherhood.

The study said there may need to be an amendment to the 1995 regulations which first allowed agencies to give abortion information. The change would allow more explicit advertising that counselling includes abortion in the list of options.