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Increasing number of Irish women choosing caesarean section to deliver their babies
A Sunday Business Post article (21.09.08), on the recent Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) Perinatal Statistics Report for Ireland in 2005 (the latest year for which statistics are available), points to an increasing trend towards delivery by caesarean section. The ESRI report shows that 26% of babies born in 2005 were born by caesarean section compared with 20% in 1999. The World health Association recommendation is that Caesarean births should not exceed 10%-15% of births
The report also shows that Ireland's birth rate topped the table for the 27 EU member states in 2005 with a birth rate of 14.9 per 1000 population followed by France 12.9, and the UK at 12 per 1000 population. Germany had the lowest birth rate at 8.3 per 1000 population. The full report may be viewed on the following URL
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Google listens to campaigners
Internet giants Google and Microsoft have pulled adverts for sex selection products and other services considered illegal in India following threats of legal action.
India's Supreme Court last month asked the two companies and Yahoo to respond to a complaint that they were illegally advertising do-it-yourself kits to find out an unborn baby's gender.
Activists said the products -- which have not been scientifically proven to be accurate or safe -- damage efforts to stem mass abortions of girls because of a traditional preference for boys in India. See also BLOG POST | |
| Greetings!
It is that time of year again when the United Nations General assembley meets in New York and concurrently the Human Rights Council is meeting in Geneva.
As I reported recently the UN held a conference on the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights from Sept 3rd to 5th in Paris. This session was held as a lead in towards Dec. 10th this years human rights day on which various special events have been organised at UN head office in New York. We report today on one of the issues that arose in the Paris conference
BLOG
In addition to our weekly newsleter ELN publishes a daily BLOG. A number of new articles have been published on my blog during the past week, which can be accessed at http://europeanlifenetwork.blogspot.com/ Some links to specific articles are also included in the stories below | |
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Human Rights and Human Responsibilities
Karel Vasak who was a panellist for one of the Paris conference sessions had a approach. Vasak said he deplored the fact that the 60th anniversary of the UDHR will not end with a universal declaration of human duties. The existing declaration has, he told the meeting, very little to say about duties and consists of only one article of three sections.
Vasak told the meeting that there should be seven categories of human duties and then went on to set out six which he categorised as duties to self, duties to others, duties to family, duties in respect of culture, and the natural environment, duties to the national community and duties to the international community. He then posed the question to the assembly what should the seventh category of human duties be? Vasek wound up his presentation by asserting that the seventh category should consist of our duty to God.
COMMENT
Whilst it is noteworthy that God was included in the list, rather than being placed at no 7, as author and creator of all, His correct place should have been first on the list.
Our duty to God is primary and all other duties stem from this. As Christians we are called to love God and to love our neighbour as ourselves
For further coverage and to listen to a weblog of the Vasak presentation see my BLOG |
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Irish Dominican Group endorses pro-abortion report
A pro abortion and pro same sex marriage report, prepared by the Irish Council of Civil Liberties has been endorsed by an Irish Dominican Group, the Dominican Justice Office (DJO) according to the Irish Catholic newspaper (July 17th). The report calls on the Irish Government to "provide a legislative framework for the provision of safe and legal abortion in Ireland". The DJO, which is a joint initiative of the Dominican Sisters and Friars, is the only religious body named on the endorsement list of the UN report on Ireland's obligations under the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The report is also endorsed by the pro-abortion Irish Family Planning Association (IFPA) the Irish affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and other pro abortion organisations.
The group run by the Irish Dominican Order has denied that they support the demand made in the report, to legalise abortion in Ireland despite the fact that they are listed as having endorsed the report
See further coverage in my BLOG |
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Irish Government announces proposals for a Mental Capacity Bill
The Irish Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Mr Dermot Ahern T.D. (15.09.2008) announced that the Government has approved his proposals for a Mental Capacity Bill. The main purpose of the Bill according to the Minister is to reform the existing Wards of Court system in so far as it applies to adults, and effectively replace it with a modern statutory framework governing decision making on behalf of persons who lack capacity. This legislation, according to Minister Ahern, will provide greater protection for a range of adult persons; from those with intellectual disabilities, persons suffering from dementia or mental illness and persons who have acquired brain injuries through trauma or accident." ELN is currently assessing the proposals and will report in due course.
Similar legislation, "The Mental Capacity Act" was enacted last year in the UK. This act has been severely criticised by pro life organisations, which point out that as a consequence of that act, patients in the UK, with conditions like dementia, stroke or brain injury are most at risk of euthanasia by neglect. Euthanasia by neglect means deliberately killing patients by withholding or withdrawing reasonable medical treatment or basic care (such as food and fluids given by tube). The worldwide euthanasia movement has declared that the legalisation of euthanasia by neglect is one of its key goals in its campaign to legalise euthanasia by lethal injection.
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