PROMINENT CHOICE IRELAND ABORTION ACTIVIST CONVICTED FOR CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
Pat Corcoran, a long-time pro-abortion campaigner and activist with Choice Ireland, has been convicted of possessing more than 7,000 images of child pornography.
Although pro-abortion groups have moved to scrub most traces of Corcoran from their web histories, there are still many photographs showing him attending abortion events over many years. Choice Ireland, with whom he had a long association, has issued no statement on their connection with the convicted child-porn user.
Corcoran, a former civil servant, was found to have 5,951 pornographic images of children between 8 and 14 years in his possession when he was first investigated in 2009. By the time Gardai were in a position to arrest him in 2012, he had downloaded a further 1,100 child pornography images and 21 videos.
During that period he appeared at many events organised by abortion supporters.
Peculiarly, the conviction wasn't well covered in the Irish media - and no media outlet at all reported Corcoran's long association with abortion campaigning.
This was remarkable. Imagine the media frenzy had a leading pro-life activist been found with such a disgusting hoard of illegal and disturbing images.
Corcoran had rubbed shoulders with the Chair of Labour Women, and spokeswoman for Choice Ireland, Sineád Aherne at numerous pro-abortion protests over the years. He repeatedly joined her and a small group of Choice Ireland members in targeting pro-life pregnancy counsellors who wanted to offer women a better answer than abortion.
He was part of a pro-abortion gang with Choice Ireland outside the High Court during the D case who shouted slogans at a silent pro-life vigil for mother and baby. They paused to applaud Labour Senator Ivana Bacik as she came to the Court to lend her opposition to the right to life of the most vulnerable children of all - a child with anencephaly.
Astonishingly, he attended the pro-abortion 'counter protests' to the massive 2013 Rally for Life despite the fact that he had been arrested and charged by the Gardai for further possession of child pornography at that stage.
Abortion supporters might claim that they couldn't stop Corcoran coming to events or protesting. But in photos taken after he first came under investigation - after he had been caught with more than 5000 child porn images - he is holding banners and playing a central role in pro-abortion protests.
The news collective Indymedia at least moved to apologise http://www.indymedia.ie/article/104264for allowing Corcoran to become an editor on the website. Choice Ireland made no such statement.
Corcoran was well known to pro-life activists for his deeply unpleasant and aggressive behaviour. The world of pro-abortion campaigners in Ireland is very small, and he was perhaps one of the best known amongst them in the past 20 years. Certainly he was usually one of the first to come out protesting against any pro-life events he considered objectionable - which was pretty much everything. His threats and menacing behaviour, usually aimed at young pro-life women, were often met with titters and smirks from his 'pro-choice' colleagues.
Despite all that, it was shocking to see the extent of the child pornography in his possession. Without dwelling on what is surely one of the most depraved and evil practises imaginable, it's harrowing to consider that the children depicted in this pornography are usually kidnapped, raped and tortured to provide images and videos for users who, of course, grow the demand for these dreadful, unspeakable acts to happen to children.
Then again, Corcoran was part of a movement which aims to make the killing of unborn children legal. Perhaps news of this conviction is shocking, but not surprising.