(Note: Since this post was first published in 2016, the law has changed in Ireland and people are able to access abortion care from their GPs in certain circumstances. For accurate information on accessing abortion care in Ireland please see our Need an abortion? page or the HSE My Options website. Legislation to regulate rogue agencies has been promised by the Government, but not yet been implemented, so there is still a risk of encountering misleading websites when seeking information on abortion in Ireland. The best way to avoid this is to ensure that abortion care is arranged via the My Options helpline/website, all details in the link above)
Anti-abortion organisations pose as non-judgmental counselling agencies to lure potentially vulnerable women with crisis pregnancies.
We recently came across a suspicious looking site which claimed to offer “professional one to one confidential & non judgemental advice” on abortion for unplanned pregnancies. Sounds great, right?
Well in theory yes. However some of the language on the site Abortion Advice .ie (we won’t link to it) raised our suspicions and we did a little digging.
The site is registered to an Eamonn Murphy. No further info is given about Eamonn except that he is a “Natural Person” and the site was registered on 08/Mar/2011 and renewed on 08/Mar/2016. However a quick google search of “Eamonn Murphy Pro-life” brings you here.
That’s right, the owner of this “non-judgemental” abortion advice site also so happens to share a name with the Co. Director of the Pro-Life Alliance. Coincidence? We think not…
The site currently has paid google ads on a number of key-words and searches including “how to get an abortion in Ireland,” “getting an abortion in Ireland,” and “I need an abortion Ireland.”
Clearly the site is attempting to target vulnerable women in crisis pregnancies who don’t have much information on available abortion services. We are not sure what “advice” they are offering women who call their number but we can be pretty sure it’s not as “non-judgemental” as they claim.
It is important to be aware of these rogue agencies and sites. Remember if you or someone you know is experiencing a crisis pregnancy there are many reputable sites and organisations that will give you real impartial and non-judgemental advice and help. These sites include:
The Irish Family Planning Association
Here is a video showing just what sort of advice they offer.