Irish Parliament OKs exception to abortion ban

 By Michael Martinez and Ben Brumfield, CNN

A protester displays a banner against Ireland's abortion laws in Dublin on November 24

(CNN) -- Irish lawmakers overwhelmingly passed new legislation early Friday that allows abortions if the mother's life is at risk. The vote was 127-31 in favor of the bill.

Members of Parliament in the devoutly Catholic country have spent hours debating the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013, which is supported by the majority government.

Conservative and progressive lawmakers argued over amendments to the draft law.

Religious lawmakers and church leaders are upset over a provision allowing abortion if a pregnant woman is acutely at risk of committing suicide. They called it a "Trojan horse" leading to easy abortion access and wanted it removed, but the provision was included in the final bill, according to The Irish Times.

 

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A woman can't just threaten to commit suicide and expect to receive an abortion, according to the bill. Two psychiatrists and an obstetrician must certify that the risk of suicide is "real and substantial."

Female lawmakers introduced an amendment to permit abortions if a woman becomes pregnant after incest or rape, but later tabled it when it ran into resistance, the Times reported.

In its final provisions, the bill underlines existing Irish laws to protect the fetus.

"It shall be an offense to intentionally destroy unborn human life," it reads. A woman who violates the law could face a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.

Doctors and hospital personnel involved in illegal abortions face the same punishment, according to the bill.

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The proposed legislation stems from the case of a woman who died after doctors refuse to perform a life-saving abortion.

News of the circumstance of her death triggered an outpouring of public outrage on Ireland's streets, leading the government to rethink the absolute nature of Ireland's abortion laws.

In October 2012, Savita Halappanavar went to a hospital in Galway, Ireland, with excruciating pain. Doctors established she was having a miscarriage, but they refused to terminate the pregnancy, afraid the law would not allow it.

Halappanavar, 31, died after her dyng fetus infected her.

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CNN's Peter Taggart in Ireland contributed to this report.