A man from County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland, where abortion in almost all circumstances is still illegal, has gone on a hunger strike to oppose an upcoming referendum on women's abortion rights. The Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland as it stands recognises equal right to life for the mother and the unborn child.
Tim Jackson, who ran as an Independent candidate in the last Irish general election, last week wrote to the Oireachtas (Irish legislature) Committee on Abortion to demand that they watch a video of an abortion taking place before they took the referendum discussions any further. After receiving no response, he has rocked up outside the Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas) to begin his hunger strike: Jackson says his strike will
, and he will continue to drink water.
Carrying a white flag, which he says is a message to the politicians that they have to 'end this killing of the unborn', Jackson posted a video message on his Facebook page (below) to say that abortion 'can't be tolerated in a civilised society'. He also claims that 1 in 20 Irish babies are aborted, which will rise if the referendum is passed, and the current rate of aborted British pregnancies is 1 in 5 - obviously, we can't find any statistical evidence which supports this.
Heavily influenced by religious beliefs, Irish pro-life campaigners like Jackson are now staging protests against the proposed referendum. In June, thousands turned out for the 'Rally for Life' in Dublin, calling for the protection of the Eighth Amendment, with banners and flags adorned with the slogan 'Save the 8th'. The saddest part of his protest is that Jackson, armed with his white flag, bagpipe player and male privilege, has never had anyone legislate over what he can and can't do with his own body.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.