This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/06/irish-women-live-tweet-periods-enda-kenny-repeal-the-eighth
The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Previous version
1
Next version
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| #repealthe8th: Irish women tweet their periods to prime minister Enda Kenny | #repealthe8th: Irish women tweet their periods to prime minister Enda Kenny |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Related: ‘It was the scariest thing I've ever done’: the Irish women forced to travel for abortions | Related: ‘It was the scariest thing I've ever done’: the Irish women forced to travel for abortions |
| Irish women have begun tweeting details of their menstrual cycles to the taoiseach, Enda Kenny, as part of a campaign against Ireland’s strict laws banning abortion. | Irish women have begun tweeting details of their menstrual cycles to the taoiseach, Enda Kenny, as part of a campaign against Ireland’s strict laws banning abortion. |
| The campaign to #repealthe8th aims to overturn the eighth amendment to the Republic of Ireland constitution, which criminalises abortion by putting the right to life of a foetus on an equal footing to that of the woman carrying it. | The campaign to #repealthe8th aims to overturn the eighth amendment to the Republic of Ireland constitution, which criminalises abortion by putting the right to life of a foetus on an equal footing to that of the woman carrying it. |
| Procuring an abortion illegally can be punished with a 14-year prison sentence. | Procuring an abortion illegally can be punished with a 14-year prison sentence. |
| Grainne Maguire kickstarted the trend, encouraging her countrywomen to share their period stories: “Women of Ireland! Your vagina is their business! Tweet @EndaKennyTD your menstrual cycle #repealthe8th” | Grainne Maguire kickstarted the trend, encouraging her countrywomen to share their period stories: “Women of Ireland! Your vagina is their business! Tweet @EndaKennyTD your menstrual cycle #repealthe8th” |
| Since we know how much the Irish state cares about our reproductive parts-I call my womb Ireland's littlest embassy ;-) #repealthe8th (1/3) | Since we know how much the Irish state cares about our reproductive parts-I call my womb Ireland's littlest embassy ;-) #repealthe8th (1/3) |
| I think its only fair that the women of Ireland let our Leader @EndaKennyTD know the full details of our menstrual cycle #repealthe8th (2/3) | I think its only fair that the women of Ireland let our Leader @EndaKennyTD know the full details of our menstrual cycle #repealthe8th (2/3) |
| Several women followed Maguire’s lead, tweeting about their own periods. | Several women followed Maguire’s lead, tweeting about their own periods. |
| There'll be shrieks of "undignified!" at tweeting @EndaKennyTD about periods. Know what's undignified? Lack of bodily autonomy #repealthe8th | There'll be shrieks of "undignified!" at tweeting @EndaKennyTD about periods. Know what's undignified? Lack of bodily autonomy #repealthe8th |
| Hey @EndaKennyTD are you BLEEDIN listening to these tweets? We're waiting for a BLOODY response @GrainneMaguire #repealthe8th | Hey @EndaKennyTD are you BLEEDIN listening to these tweets? We're waiting for a BLOODY response @GrainneMaguire #repealthe8th |
| I'm bleeding! @EndaKennyTD Bleedin outraged that Irish women in the 21st Century don't have the right to chose #repealthe8th | I'm bleeding! @EndaKennyTD Bleedin outraged that Irish women in the 21st Century don't have the right to chose #repealthe8th |
| @EndaKennyTD Hi Enda, my ovulation day was a week ago today. 11 more days of freedom. And then it'll be a bloody nightmare #repealthe8th | @EndaKennyTD Hi Enda, my ovulation day was a week ago today. 11 more days of freedom. And then it'll be a bloody nightmare #repealthe8th |
| @endakennytd I'm definitely PMS-ing so I'm not pregnant - phew! #dodgedabullet #repealthe8th | @endakennytd I'm definitely PMS-ing so I'm not pregnant - phew! #dodgedabullet #repealthe8th |
| Others had more direct messages for Kenny: | Others had more direct messages for Kenny: |
| @EndaKennyTD 1st period since my stillborn baby. I carried her for 6weeks after her diagnosis, losing my mind with grief. #repealthe8th | @EndaKennyTD 1st period since my stillborn baby. I carried her for 6weeks after her diagnosis, losing my mind with grief. #repealthe8th |
| “Losing a baby slowly and painfully over weeks, knowing there’s an alternative that you’re being denied is pure torture,” the same commenter added. | “Losing a baby slowly and painfully over weeks, knowing there’s an alternative that you’re being denied is pure torture,” the same commenter added. |
| Around 10 women travel from Ireland to Britain or another European country every day for an abortion it would be illegal for them to undergo at home. | Around 10 women travel from Ireland to Britain or another European country every day for an abortion it would be illegal for them to undergo at home. |
| A change to the Irish constitution can be made only via a referendum, such as the one that recently saw same-sex marriage legalised. | A change to the Irish constitution can be made only via a referendum, such as the one that recently saw same-sex marriage legalised. |
| Related: How heartbreak led Graham and Helen Linehan to campaign for abortion in Ireland | Related: How heartbreak led Graham and Helen Linehan to campaign for abortion in Ireland |
| Kenny has not responded on Twitter. But he has said he will not commit his Fine Gael party to a referendum on the issue. | Kenny has not responded on Twitter. But he has said he will not commit his Fine Gael party to a referendum on the issue. |
| “In respect of the eighth amendment I do not favour abortion on demand and I have no intention of abolishing the eighth amendment without considering what it might be that might replace it,” Kenny said recently. | “In respect of the eighth amendment I do not favour abortion on demand and I have no intention of abolishing the eighth amendment without considering what it might be that might replace it,” Kenny said recently. |
| “But believe me, believe me, to commit to abolishing the eighth amendment without consideration of what you might do is not on my radar.” | “But believe me, believe me, to commit to abolishing the eighth amendment without consideration of what you might do is not on my radar.” |
| The Labour party has said it will commit to a referendum in its general election manifesto. | |
| Abortion is legal in Ireland only if the woman’s life is determined to be at risk, but the definition of risk is vague. In 2012, Savita Halappanavar died in hospital in Galway from blood poisoning after a miscarriage. An inquest into her death was told that an abortion would have saved her life, but it was not legal to perform one. | Abortion is legal in Ireland only if the woman’s life is determined to be at risk, but the definition of risk is vague. In 2012, Savita Halappanavar died in hospital in Galway from blood poisoning after a miscarriage. An inquest into her death was told that an abortion would have saved her life, but it was not legal to perform one. |
Previous version
1
Next version