There’s good news out of Northern Ireland. Precious Life President Bernadette Smyth called our office last week to request prayers, since a very important ruling was coming down on Monday. With Northern Ireland six hours ahead of Chicago, the ruling Monday Morning had been made by the time we arrived at our office. Bernie was on the phone with the good news that Judge Brian Kerr had thrown out the Family Planning Association’s request that Northern Ireland’s abortion law be clarified.
Court Victory in Northern Ireland
The Judge said, in effect that the law was clear enough. Bernie Smyth said that the law, though not perfect, does clearly give protection to unborn babies and their mothers and that all the abortionists were after was to impose abortion on demand on Northern Ireland against the wishes of the vast majority of citizens.
The call for clarification was a classic pro-abortion tactic, she said. It has worked in many countries including Great Britain. But it didn’t work in northern Ireland. The law as written allows for exceptions, but the Judge said he could find only four or five instances where he thought the law applied. The abortions were performed in England.
Bernie said two hundred pro-lifers knelt and prayed in front of the High Court building in Belfast and that when the ruling was announced a great cheer went up from the pro-life side. Bernie estimated that she did at least two dozen interviews, mostly positive treatment from the media, except, she said, for some radio stations who were reluctant to admit that this was clearly a pro-life victory.
Bernie says Precious Life and other pro-life groups will continue their fight for handicapped babies who can still be aborted under the old law. There is an exception in the law for allowing abortions for handicapped children, if the handicap can be detected in utero.
Bernie Smyth Thanks Supporters in U.S.
Bernie credits part of their victory to the help they received from the States, through our prayers and through our encouragement and advice. When Ed Martin, Karen Black and I were in Northern Ireland in October we joined a massive protest at the Parliament Building and gave talks in Belfast and Derry encouraging participation in the process and assuring citizens of Northern Ireland that it is much easier to keep the law tight than to try to deal with it when it has been opened up.
Judge Kerr is not a notable pro-life judge but saw the deceit in the Family Planning effort to open up the law. Congratulations to Bernie and Paula and Moira and Derrick and all the good pro-life fighters of Northern Ireland who are keeping abortion out of Northern Ireland.
The Borts say they will appeal the ruling.
Illinois Insurers Forced to Cover Contraceptives
In Chicago Monday morning Illinois Governor Rob Blagojevich signed Illinois House Bill 211 into law. This is the insurance bill that mandates that contraceptives and abortifacients must be included in most insurance policy health coverage.
Called the Contraceptive Equity law, it will go into effect on January 1, 2004. It will require that insurance plans that already cover prescription drugs and devices also cover all Federal Drug Administration approved prescription contraceptives. The bill was sponsored by Sara Feigenholtz in the House and Iris Martinez in the Senate. Illinois now joins nineteen other states that have similar laws, government ordering insurance companies to supply lethal drugs and devices to kill babies and wreck women’s health.
In our interview with CLTV Monday we said that contraception drugs and devices, besides many being also abortifacients, are damaging women and are what moral people still call mortal sin. Up until the middle of the last century all churches considered contraceptives immoral, and government outlawed them. But we have become sex maniacs and have lost all sense of right and wrong as a society, although practicing Christians still consider these drugs and devices to be serious offenses against God and nature — and the human body. Our words of wisdom probably will never make it into the public forum, but there they are and we stand by them. Should the whole world accept contraception and abortion, it is still wrong and always will be.
A law that went into effect in December 2000 ordered that employers of more than 15 employees were on notice that if they failed to provide contraceptive coverage they could be sued by their employees for sex discrimination. Since then American Airlines, AT&T and Wal-Mart were sued and many companies have complied with the unjust, godless order. Now it is the law of the land in the Land of Lincoln. Honest Abe must be spinning in his grave.
It is significant that Blagojevich signed the kill bill at Illinois Masonic Hospital, a notorious late term abortion facility.
Face the Truth Chicago Starts Wednesday
Want to do something to get back at the baby killers, the pro-abortion Governor and the ladies who jammed through this lethal legislation join us in our Face the Truth tour July 9 through 19. Stand up for life. Don’t sit this one out. Someday this may prove to be the onion stem that pulls you into Heaven. See our Truth 2003 page or call our office for particulars.
