As many 30,000 people attended a pro-life vigil in Dublin's Merrion Square Saturday, Jan. 19, to oppose any changes to abortion legislation in the Republic of Ireland.

In a phone call from the rally, Dr. Eoghan de Faoite, with Youth Defence, and rally attendees demanded in unison that Prime Minister Enda Kenny and the government keep their "pro-life promise."

Last month the Irish government said that it would legislate abortion in "certain cases." Abortion is currently illegal in Ireland, except to save the life of the mother.

How will this change open the door for widespread abortion on demand in Ireland? Dr. Sean O'Domhnaill, with the Life Institute in Dublin, spoke with Christian World News about this and more, Jan. 25.

The new government move came after an Indian dentist, 31-year-old Savita Halappanavar, was widely reported to have died because she was denied an abortion by Galway University Hospital.

But the journalist who first reported the story has since admitted that the facts of Halappanavar's death were "muddled."

Irish pro-life leaders say the autopsy shows Halappanavar died from an infection caused by an antibiotic-resistant form of E-coli following a miscarriage.

They insist hospital records show there was no request for an abortion. And they quote doctors who say her death on Oct. 28 had nothing to do with Ireland's ban on abortion.

A small counter-demonstration was also held Saturday by the newly formed Abortion Rights Campaign. They want a repeal of the 8th Amendment to the Irish constitution which protects the unborn.

*Original post Jan. 19, 2013.