Tomás Ó Flatharta

Praveen Halappanavar, husband of Savita Speaks – he has little confidence in the Health Services Executive Inquiry established by the Irish State and encourages public mass activity :

Mr Halappanavar also said there were five members of medical staff, as well as a family friend, present in the room with him and Savita when they were told on Tuesday, October 23rd that she could not have a termination of the pregnancy she was miscarrying because “this is a Catholic country”.

Mr Halappanavar also said he believed no inquiry would have been established if his wife’s death had not been brought to public attention.

“I was in India for nearly two weeks and I never heard from the hospital . . . So I had to see people became aware . . . I don’t think there would be any inquiry if there was not the public pressure. I think there would have been an inquest and no one would have known this happened. It is a pity because I thought Ireland would care more for someone so young who died. That let me down. I was not happy about that.”

Asked whether Ms Halappanavar’s parents would come to Ireland for the inquiry or inquest, he said if her father was not “convinced with the investigation” he was “very keen to come over”.

“The law has to change. Maybe Savita was born to change the laws here.”

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2012/1120/1224326840862.html

North Kildare Deputy Catherine Murphy makes a telling point about Dáil Votes; discussing the Sinn Féin Private Members’ Motion tabled for decision on Wednesday November 21, Murphy observes :

Catherine Murphy, Chief Whip of the Technical Group, said she would support the motion but expected the response of her colleagues in the group would be “mixed”, with more left-wing members backing the motion while others would not do so.

She added: “It’s not a Private Members’ Motion that we actually require, it’s legislation. I’m disappointed the Minister for Health is talking about it being next year before action is taken.It does look like being some considerable distance down the road. I don’t want it pushed along so that the heat is taken out of the situation: the same set of circumstances could apply to some other woman in the future.”

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1119/1224326787221.html