Fake News: Media Hijacks Pro-Abortion Event in West Belfast to Vilify NI Pro-Lifers
In the wake of an extremist pro-abortion meeting in West Belfast which took place yesterday afternoon, August 8th, fake news has surfaced attempting to demonise pro-lifers and distort the truth about public views on abortion here. Liberal, pro-abortion news giant The Huffington Post hyperbolically reported that ‘Labour MP Stella Creasy needed the protection of a police escort to get past anti-abortion protesters in Belfast.’ Creasy was the individual responsible for organising the amendment to the Queen’s Speech in June 2017 which gained cross-party support and was signed by 100 MPs. Creasy’s resolute actions as a pro-abortion MP ultimately led to the UK giving the damning go-ahead for Northern Irish women to access free abortions in the UK mainland on the NHS, even though a Supreme Court here ruled in the same month that Northern Ireland’s pro-life laws were not in breach of international human rights. Also in June, there was a fantastic victory at Belfast City High Court for the Horner appeal; the judges recognised and respected the democratic process of Northern Ireland, which in turn upholds the fundamental and universal human right to life here.
The behaviour of Stella Creasy and the UK’s political elite can be perceived as nothing short of tyrannical, stemming from the fact that the people of Northern Ireland have repeatedly and emphatically rejected abortion as regressive, barbaric and wholly unacceptable for an equal and ethical society. Yet the UK stridently maintains that it is somehow tolerable to override the democratic process here – the process which has safeguarded the lives of at least 100,000 people alive in Northern Ireland today. Abortion is a devolved matter here – it is entirely undemocratic and totally acceptable that a despotic Westminster government gives itself the power to speak for Northern Ireland. Labour MP Stella Creasy does not represent us.
Precious Life organised a protest outside the Falls Road Library, West Belfast yesterday afternoon, August 8th as the anti-life event was taking place as part of Féile an Phobail’s ironically named ‘Festival of the People.’ Our organisation sent out an unequivocal and unified message on behalf of the people of Northern Ireland that we do not want nor do we need abortion.
Our representatives are the only group working daily on the streets of the North to educate the public on the reality of abortion and we continuously see the wide scale rejection of the notion that abortion can or should be viewed as ‘healthcare.’ When people are informed and aware of the horrific reality of abortion, it is undeniable that the abortion procedure is not simply the ‘termination of a pregnancy’ as Creasy and other pro-abortion campaigners incessantly brand it. Rather, what every shred of common sense, logic and scientific evidence dictates is that abortion is the ending of a human life.
The meeting itself was brimming with the usual dishonest and carefully-crafted euphemisms which have long invaded the burning debate surrounding abortion. We heard recurring terms like ‘women’s rights,’ ‘equality,’ ‘human rights’ and ‘compassion’ used to illustrate a procedure and a movement that is historically and profoundly anti-woman, anti-science, anti-equality and anti-human rights. In the same breath, the speakers who headlined the event, from organisations such as the FPA (Family Planning Association) in Northern Ireland and the pro-abortion Royal College of Midwives, were at great pains to caricature pro-lifers as mean-spirited zealots who tyrannically ‘continuously harass’ and ‘bully’ others into supporting their ‘anti-choice’ viewpoint.
The meeting was strewn with dangerous and stunning fabrications as members of the panel shamelessly told invented stories of how frightened women have to exit Marie Stopes through the back doors out of fear of being ‘attacked’ and ‘harassed.’ What most people know in actuality is that pro-life volunteers kindly give their time and energy to help countless abortion-minded women outside Marie Stopes through offering them free, comprehensive information and advice. We have seen the beautiful fruit of our work through little babies here being saved from the atrocity that tears them limb from limb after we talked to their mothers outside Marie Stopes. This service to the public is invaluable seeing as the vast majority of women who have abortions do so not in the name of what Creasy and her cohorts call ‘choice’ but because they feel that they have no other choice.
The utterly preposterous claims of ‘unacceptable intimidation,’ ‘torment’ and ‘harassment’ were relentless throughout the absurd meeting. At one point the incredible allegation was even raised that ‘anti-choice’ men wait outside the doors of abortion provider Marie Stopes in Belfast to ‘chase traumatised women down allies.’ I was honestly speechless.
Jarring generalisations were used, such as the myth that those who call themselves ‘pro-life’ do not deserve to do so and they are actually broadly in favour of the death penalty, despite the fact that the term ‘pro-life’ means to defend life at all of its stages from conception to natural death. The meeting went from bad to worse, and one member of the panel crassly used a ridiculous and tasteless anecdote about how St. Brigid performed the first ever abortion, which lowered the tone of the meeting further. The perceptible lack of class was hardly surprising seeing as Creasy proudly declared herself a ‘pissed off feminist’ much to the delight and amusement of those in the audience.
The liberal Huffington Post did a tremendous job of demonising innocent protestors, it must be said. They described our banners, which illustrated factually and visually, a little child going into Marie Stopes and then coming out following an abortion, as ‘gruesome foetus posters’ and attached the photos online with a disclaimer: (WARNING: graphic and distressing images below).” It truly amazes me how this group can celebrate something which they cannot bear to look at.
Although we were a peaceful minority who had to deal with hateful comments, menacing remarks and hostile glares, we reportedly ‘crowded’ the venue and Creasy, despite the fact that quite frankly, virtually nobody would even have known who she was, “left the building flanked by police.” There were also alleged “reports charity workers were attacked” – another false admission from the Huffington Post. Hell-bent on embellishing the situation, following the meeting the labour MP Creasy tweeted: “First time I have had a police escort to leave a public meeting - polls clearly show anti-choice protestors out of step with NI public.” The so-called ‘demand’ for abortion here was a recurrent and disturbing theme throughout the meeting. Creasy and others alluded to a whole collection of imaginary polls which apparently proved that the 1.8 million people in NI are demanding abortion, leaving those who respect life ‘out of step’ with the rest of the public. In reality, the only poll they have to go by was the utterly shambolic one conducted by blood-thirsty Amnesty International, who decided that they were capable of somehow representing the people here, despite the fact that they polled a mere 1,000 people and didn’t even ask for an NI address, leaving the poll completely illegitimate.
The reality is that Northern Ireland is a pro-life country and Ireland as a whole has one of the best rates of maternal health in the world. We protect our women and children – both lives are regarded as equal in our law – and we will not cave into the mounting pressure from a backwards mainland UK where one in three pregnancies end in abortion – the deliberate and savage termination of human life through dismemberment or poisoning.
We will continue to work tirelessly to keep abortion not only illegal but unthinkable. Be assured that our organisation will fight to protect the lives of our women and children in the face of growing attacks and media bias. We thank all of you for your incredible continued support.