BELFAST, : Amnesty International has been accused of betraying its mission by campaigning for abortion in Northern Ireland rather than focusing on genuine human rights.
The accusation was made by the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) www.spuc.org.uk , the UK’s largest pro-life group.
Liam Gibson, SPUC's Northern Ireland development officer, said: "Genuine human rights campaigners are bewildered by Amnesty's campaign to overturn Northern Ireland's abortion laws. Those laws exist to protect vulnerable women from harm and unborn children from death.
"Amnesty was founded to use the truth on behalf of victims, but its campaign includes misleading people about the truth about dangerous abortion pills bought online and used illegally.
"We urge politicians not to give in Amnesty's attempt to make them feel guilty about firm but fair penalties for the serious crime of unlawful killing of the innocent", concluded Mr Gibson.
For more detailed comments or to request an interview, please contact Liam Gibson on:
Notes for Editors
Amnesty International claims that "medicated abortion pills are internationally regarded as safe", but abortion pills are known to have a high rate of complications including incomplete abortion, haemorrhage and infections - see http://abortionpillrisks.org/health-risks/
Northern Ireland, with its tight restrictions on abortion, has had the lowest direct obstetric death rate of any region in the UK.