European Union votes down abortion as a "human right"

Personhood USA: Following 1.4 million European personhood signatures, European Union votes down abortion as a "human right"

BRUSSELS, Oct. 22, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The European Parliament voted down a report defining abortion as a "human right" today, in accordance with the popular groundswell of pro-life sentiment in Europe. The vote comes after the "One of Us" campaign, endorsed by Personhood USA and the Vatican, announced it has collected more than 1,400,000 signatures within the European Union to recognize the personhood of unborn children.

The draft report considered by the European Parliament would have elevated the right to abortion above the right to life, restricted the conscience rights and religious freedom of health care workers, and demanded public funding for abortion and other forms of embryonic destruction. The assembly defeated the report in a 351 to 319 vote, sending it back to committee.

Currently, international law recognizes no "right to abortion." Even if adopted, legal scholars question whether the report could have held any binding legal effect over member states, since the European Union only possesses the authority conferred to it by member states.

"Representatives at the European Parliament wisely listened to the pro-life will of the people," said Josh Craddock, Personhood USA's United Nations liaison. "More than one million voices have called for the EU to recognize personhood for unborn children. It's time for the radical 'experts' in Brussels who drafted this report to abandon their delusional social agenda."

The "One of Us" initiative is only the second European Citizens' Initiative in history to reach the petition requirements established by the Commission. If passed, it will ban EU financing of abortion and other embryonic destruction.

Craddock continued: "Killing an innocent human being can never be considered a fundamental 'human right.' Life is the ultimate human right, without which no other rights can exist."

SOURCE Personhood USA