Editors note: Father Terry Gensemer and a team from CEC for Life participated in this rally, working with Youth Defence. Cassandra Donatelli, Church of Christ Jesus Victor in Portland Maine, is seen in the photo below at the far right. The story and photo were provided to us by Precious Life – see preciouslife.com for more information.
Gardai put the figure at around 3,000, organizers believe it was more like 4,000-5,000 participants, but no matter what the attendance at Saturday’s All-Ireland Pro-life Rally the message was made very clear: the people of this island want Ireland to remain abortion free.
The rally heard speakers from such anti-abortion groups as Youth Defence, Precious Life and Coir.
Bernie Smyth of Precious Life told the marchers of the threats to life in the north of Ireland: “we’re dealing with an attempt by the Department of Health in the north to introduce abortion on broad grounds by attempting to introduce new so-called abortion guidelines”.
Niamh Uí Bhriain, chairperson of the Rally Committee, pointed to the current dangers to Ireland’s pro-life ethos in the south. She mentioned the push for embryo research in University College Cork; the abortion case being sponsored by the Irish Family Planning Association before the European Court of Justice; and the HSE’s recent comments regarding abortion and disabled children, as serious matters of concern. “The majority of people in this country are pro-life,” she affirmed. “But we need to make sure our voices are heard for the unborn, since together we are the voice for the voiceless.”
