"I am pro-life. All of us in this chamber are. I hate those labels. I don’t know anyone who wants to go out and end a life," Jerry Buttimer told his fellow senators, urging them to stick to the facts.
The Fine Gael leader of the Seanad appealed to members to remain respectful, as the Upper House began two days of debate this week on a bill to enable a referendum on the Eighth Amendment.
As a premature baby born at two pounds who clung to life, Mr Buttimer told his colleagues he cherished life, but was in favour of repealing the Eighth Amendment.
The debate reflected the passionate, deeply held, differing views within all parties.
Senator Buttimer’s Fine Gael colleague Paudie Coffey said while he would vote in favour of having a referendum, he remained steadfast in his position to fundamentally protect the life of the unborn.
He said he believes that the unborn has no voice in this debate. He said that he wants to add his voice to speak for them.
Within Fianna Fáil, there were similar differing views. Senator Ned O’Sullivan, who supports repeal, urged the men of Ireland, "Fir na hÉireann", to get involved in the debate.
Senator O’Sullivan drew laughter when he critcised those who had insulted him online because of his position.
"Some of the people who put that stuff on Facebook I know for a fact their antecedents were making tae for the Black and Tans."
However, his colleague Diarmuid Wilson said the bill means that any parliament "can set any guidelines".
"We are told 12 weeks at present, this could be increased to six months, seven months, eight months. There is nothing to prevent that happening if we take the provision that is in article 40.3.3. out and replace it with the line."
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Labour Senator Ivana Bacik recalled her days as president of the Students' Union in Trinity College Dublin in the late 80s, when she faced court action from SPUC, the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child, for giving abortion information.
"I will never forget the desperation in the voices of the women who phoned us."
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
But this is a matter of life and death, Independent Senator Rónán Mullen told Senator Bacik.
He also said politicians could not be trusted: "Across the western world, politicians say one thing at election time... reassuring ordinary folk they support the right to life of the unborn but they do a very different thing when political convenience seems to indicate. They go on journeys without consulting two sides of the story," he said.
Independent Senator Michael McDowell told the Seanad that the forthcoming referendum on the Eighth Amendment "was by no means a foregone conclusion".
He said the proposed referendum was "quite different" to the marriage equality referendum.
"It is to the middle ground that the arguments must be addressed," he said.
Sinn Féin TD Paul Gavan said he supported the recommendation of the Oireachtas Committee to allow terminations up to 12 weeks.
He told how he and his wife suffered a miscarriage at 12 weeks and were handed the remains in a box the size of a matchbox.
"We were handed the embryo at 12 weeks and it was in a matchbox, that is the reality," he said.
