Women have long fought for this control of their own bodies

THIS is an important day for the women of Ireland, writes Victoria White. We have said we can have babies. Our bodies know how it’s done. We just need a little help and encouragement. And now they’re listening. 

Today, with the publication of the National Maternity Strategy 2016-2026, the women of Ireland have custody, again, of their own bodies in labour — in theory.

This is not the end of the battle, but perhaps it is the beginning of the end. It has been a battle fought by brave, outspoken people, mostly women, such as the leaders of the advocacy group, AIMS Ireland, by writers, such as Jo Murphy-Lawless and Patricia Kennedy, and by survivors and victims of horrific malpractice in Irish maternity hospitals.