On 4th June 2009, we posted information about a petition circulating in Europe called Make Noise For Free Choice (www.makenoiseforfreechoice.eu) to promote access to safe and legal abortion throughout Europe. On 12th July 2009, the Sunday Times had an article on Make Noise for Free Choice.
The article talked about the campaign and the creator of the petition, Birgitta Ohlsson of the Swedish Liberal party, who described Ireland's abortion laws as 'medieval' and 'terrifying'. The article then went on quote ONLY pro-life campaigners in Ireland on their response to the Make Noise For Free Choice campaign, and failed to elicit a comment from ANY of the active Irish pro-choice organisations and/or activists working to promote access to safe and legal abortions and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health information and services in Ireland.
The failure to contact any of these groups or activists for their comments is simply bad journalism, and only serves to perpetuate the myth created by anti-abortion organisations that the campaign for safe and legal abortion in Ireland is coming from outside of Ireland, instead of being something that the majority of the Irish population think is a right women should have in Ireland (see for instance the results from the 2006 ESRI/RCSI poll on attitudes towards abortion in Ireland).
Please make your voices heard by posting a response to the article online or sending a letter to the Editor of the Sunday Times (letters@sunday-times.co.uk) calling for fair and objective journalism on the abortion issue!
