'Heartbroken' Irish couple live-tweet UK abortion journey

'Heartbroken' Irish couple live-tweet UK abortion journey




An Irish couple have live tweeted their journey to the UK to have an abortion on Thursday. 

The couple posted on Twitter from the @itstimetorepeal account -- a reference to Ireland's Eighth amendment, which makes abortion illegal under most circumstances in the Republic of Ireland. 



The husband and wife, posting anonymously as Heartbroken & Punished, said they made the decision after learning that a fetal abnormality meant their child if carried to term, would likely die within hours after birth.

The couple's first child, now aged 3, was born with a genetic mutation and has spent much of his life in and out of hospital. The couple says he will require full time care for the foreseeable future. 

They said that the journey was one they never wanted to consider -- let alone share with others -- but they wanted to bring attention to what couples in their position face under Ireland's abortion laws, which are among the most restrictive in Europe. 

"Sharing the devastation we feel is not something we wanted to do as we are both quite private people and never wanted to involve our families, who have been incredibly supportive, due to the stigma that remains in our country," the couple told CNN, while they were waiting for the procedure to take place at a Liverpool clinic.

"We felt that we had no option but to draw attention to our journey and the countless others that are being made to leave Ireland instead of being cared for by our own," they added.

Abortion in Ireland is almost entirely illegal. Since 1983, the Irish constitution has placed the "right to life of the unborn" on an equal footing with the right to life of the pregnant woman. Two referendums to repeal the law have been put forward since - they've both been rejected. 

The couple join thousands of women who have already made the trip across the Irish Sea this year for an abortion. Last year, 3,451 Irish women traveled to England and Wales for the procedure, according to the UK's Department of Health.