Ireland, for the first time, has compensated a woman for the trauma caused by its strict anti-abortion laws, The Guardian reported. A United Nations Human Rights Committee in June 2016 had found that Ireland violated Amanda Mellet’s human rights by forcing her to travel to England for an abortion. The Irish government has offered €30,000 (approximately Rs 23 lakh) as compensation to Mellet.
In 2013, Mellet and her husband were told that her foetus had severe congenital defects, which would lead to its death in the womb or shortly after birth. According to Ireland’s strict anti-abortion laws, a pregnant woman has to either choose between giving birth to a baby who will not live long or travelling abroad for an abortion.
Ireland’s ban on abortion forced Mellet to travel to England and return within 12 hours after the procedure, because she couldn’t afford to stay longer, The New York Times reported. In 2015, more than 3,000 women travelled from Ireland to England for abortions, according to the Irish Family Planning Association.
The UN committee also found that Mellet was “denied bereavement counselling and medical care available to women who miscarry”, reported NYT. Mellet is one of three women who took their cases to the UN and argued that a prohibition on abortions for fatal foetal abnormalities was “cruel and inhumane”.
The UN Committee had suggested Ireland change its abortion laws and allow abortion in cases of fatal foetal abnormalities. However, the government has said that it will not make a commitment to change the law, reported The Irish Times.
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