40,000 attend pro-life protest
Anti-abortion groups weaved through the capital for a mass rally, five days before the law is expected to be passed in the Dáil.
A huge Garda operation was in place as the protesters walked by pro-choice demonstrators who had lined some of the route along O’Connell St.
Earlier, in a Mass celebrating the gift of life, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said every human life must be respected, from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death and at every moment in-between.
“Being pro-life is not about a slogan or a mantra,” he told the packed congregation in the Church of St Dominick, Dublin.
“It is about being someone who searches for the foundations of the deepest meaning of life and the roots of hope.”
A number of amendments and clarifications are been made to the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013 by Health Minister James Reilly, which will be voted on by TDs next week.
If enacted, the bill will legalise abortion where there is a real and substantial risk to the life of the mother, including the threat of suicide.
Minister for European Affairs Lucinda Creighton — the most senior figure opposed to parts of the legislation — lodged a series of amendments to the proposed legislation, including changing a clause that would allow an abortion when an expectant mother is at risk of suicide.
Four TDs were automatically expelled from the Fine Gael parliamentary party after they voted against the Government in the first series of ballots.
