A CAMPAIGN EVENT featuring numerous politicians who support a Yes vote in Friday’s referendum on the Eighth Amendment was abruptly ended when a heckler repeatedly shouted questions at Health Minister Simon Harris this afternoon.
Tim Jackson, who has been involved in several pro-life campaigns, interrupted the Women’s Health in Ireland press conference in Dublin’s Davenport Hotel to repeatedly ask Minister Harris if it was “okay to murder babies?”
Jackson’s outburst was quickly drowned out when an official appealed for a round of applause for the minister. At this point Minister Harris promptly left the press conference.
When the applause died down he shouted: “Can we continue to clap for the killing of Irish children?” As the politicians dispersed Jackson repeatedly shouted more questions.
On the street outside the hotel, Jackson confronted Social Democrat TDs Catherine Murphy and Róisín Shortall. When asked what group he was representing he responded: “Many.”
Jackson previously ran as an Independent candidate in the 2016 General Election. He also staged a short-lived hunger strike in September last year in an effort to force the Oireachtas committee examining the Eighth Amendment to watch a video of an abortion.
The press conference was Women’s Health in Ireland’s final event. Before the meeting was quickly wrapped up politicians, several of whom were members of the Oireachtas Eighth Amendment committee, appealed for a Yes vote in Friday’s referendum.
Minister Harris said the level of cross party representation at the event showed the strength and determination of the Yes campaign. “For far too long we have buried our heads in the sand in this country,” he said.
We have ignored the reality of crisis pregnancy and that has resulted in at least nine women every single day having to leave this jurisdiction to access healthcare abroad.
Fianna Fáil’s Timmy Dooley, Labour’s Jan O’Sullivan, Catherine Murphy and Independent Senator Lynn Ruane also spoke at the event.
Dooley warned that the chance to repeal the Eighth Amendment will not arise again for a long time. “Nobody should be taken in by the ruse that we can go back and revisit this. It’s been a torturous campaign,” he said.
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