Doctors have been feeding the 18 week pregnant mother through a tube to give the foetus a chance to live. The woman in her late 20s was hospitalised following a head injury on November 29 and was placed on life support after suffering a build-up of fluid on the brain. She was declared clinically dead on December 3.
Under the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland, equal status is given to the rights of the mother and the unborn child.
Doctors were concerned they would be breaking the law if they didn't provide equal medical support to the unborn baby and devised a care plan to give the unborn baby a chance to survive.
The interests of the woman, her parents, the unborn foetus and the Health Service Executivewere being separately represented at Dublin's High Court.
Lawyers for the unborn child said, immediately following the ruling, that they would not appeal against the decision. The three judges said that it was in the interests of the child that the withdrawal of life-support was in its best interests in what they described as a "tragic and unfortunate case".
The family say they endured a horrific ordeal. The woman's father told judges that back on November 29th he was informed she had died.
Dublin's High Court heard testimonies from seven doctors, the woman's father and her partner who is the father of the unborn baby. Doctors pleaded in court to be allowed to turn off the machines. The woman's father told the court, "My daughter is dead. The chances of the foetus surviving are minimal, we have been told. I want her to have dignity and be put to rest."
The case has reignited debate in Ireland, a predominantly Catholic country with a constitution that gives the foetus an equal right to life.
In 2012, a campaign was launched in Galway after a 31-year-old woman died in an Irish hospital. Savita Halappanavar was 17 weeks pregnant and was suffering a miscarriage. But doctors refused to perform an abortion because the foetal heart was still beating. Savita went on to develop septicaemia and multiple organ failure which led to her death. Her husband believes she would be alive today if she'd had an abortion. Savita's death prompted protests all over the world calling for a review of Ireland's abortion laws.
Ireland is the only country in Europe where abortion remains illegal.
Anne Rossiter, author of the book Ireland's Hidden Diaspora: The Abortion Trail and the Making of a London-Irish Underground, 1980 — 2000, has been campaigning informally and formally for the last 40 years for Irish women to be legally allowed an abortion.
Commenting on the ruling, Anne Rossiter says she is relieved for the sake of the family, but asks for how much longer can the debate on abortion continue in this way?
“It does indeed challenge the constitution but as long as the abortion law remains in place, what else can activists do but keep on pressing for a removal of the amendment. On a political level, this is just one case that has been judged on its individual merit – but how long can this go on, especially if the situation arises again."
Anne Rossiter says the system is unworkable. “To have this debate any time a woman’s life is in danger means we’re not making any progress. The Irish State stinks and the population needs to make a progressive decision and relieve this horrendous roundabout of court cases to relieve doctors and families of any conflict”.
