THE CONCHO PADRE POST

In the early hours of July 12, following a marathon debate, the Irish parliament voted 127-31 in favor of the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill, which legalizes abortion in some circumstances, including when the mother says she is suicidal. Only five members of the majority Fine Gael party broke ranks with Prime Minister Enda Kelly, who did not permit a conscience vote on the issue. In doing so, the five were automatically expelled from the party. One of the five, Lucinda Creighton, 33, resigned from her post as Ireland’s European affairs minister. “I think compromise is essential to any coalition,” she said. “I feel we’ve compromised on economic issues, social policy, and so on. But when it comes to something that is a matter of life and death, at least as far as I’m concerned it is, I think it’s not really possible to compromise.” In addition, Sinn Féin, Ireland’s fourth-largest party, suspended a lawmaker who voted against the bill.