[personal profile] archerships
[Women on Waves is early example of the kind of regulatory arbitrage that seasteads will be able to provide, once they're more widespread. ]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1382412.stm

Monday, 11 June, 2001, 18:51 GMT 19:51 UK
Floating abortion clinic sets sail

The clinic has been set up in a shipping container
A ship carrying an on-board gynaecological clinic has left the Netherlands for Ireland, where it plans to offer abortions to Irish women.
The ship's departure was shrouded in secrecy to dodge demonstrators.

It left without the necessary authorisation from the Dutch authorities to carry out abortions.

The Dutch-registered ship has been paid for by a private Dutch voluntary organisation, Women on Waves.

The group says it wants to offer abortions to women who cannot travel to the UK, the most popular place for Irish women to terminate unwanted pregnancies.

The ship is due to arrive in Dublin on Thursday.

Family planning


While docked it will give out contraceptives and family planning advice.

Anyone wanting an abortion will be ferried outside Ireland's territorial waters.



The clinic's visit to Dublin will make waves
This should ensure that neither the organisers nor any women will be liable to prosecution.

Since 1992 Irish law has recognised the right of women to leave the country and have an abortion elsewhere.

Last year more than 6,000 women visited the UK to terminate pregnancies, according to the Irish Family Planning Association.

Women on Waves was established by Dr Rebecca Gomperts, previously a doctor on a Greenpeace ship, the Rainbow Warrior.

Dr Gomperts said the ship had been fitted with security equipment in case it encountered violent opposition. The clinic was built inside a shipping container so it could be easily moved.


Early abortions only

Ireland will be the ship's first stop. Visits to Brazil and the Philippines are also being considered.


Women on Waves says only pregnancies in their first three months will be terminated on the ship because the risks of any complications are negligible, as long as the operation is performed by an experienced doctor.

Pro-life critics in Ireland - where abortions remain illegal - have described the ship as "a gigantic publicity stunt".

One pro-life campaigner said Dr Gomperts would be "run out of port" not only by anti-abortion activists, but by politicians too.

Date: 2006-01-25 08:27 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] perich.livejournal.com
This is frickin' sweet.

Date: 2006-01-25 08:47 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] crasch.livejournal.com
Yes, yes it is. I can't wait until someone offers "shooting cruises" off the coast of England.

Date: 2006-01-25 09:04 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ernunnos.livejournal.com
And ultimately futile. All they have to do is pass laws like those already exist to combat pedophile sex tourism stating "If it's illegal to do on nation X's soil, it's illegal for citizens of nation X to do it elsewhere." It might work temporarily, until they get around to changing the law, but it doesn't change your long term options.
  1. Move.
  2. Change your government.

Date: 2006-01-25 09:14 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] herbaliser.livejournal.com
And I'm sure pimps in Thailand check their clients passports before taking their money.

How does riverboat gambling work in the States?

Date: 2006-01-25 09:41 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ernunnos.livejournal.com
Oh, they don't, but it's still not a good idea to flash around your vacation pictures once you get home, know what I mean? And it would be a very simple matter to put law enforcement on the pier when the abortion boat comes sailing in...

The riverboat gambling works because the governments want it to work. They're getting healthy kickbacks, and they can avoid charges that it's ruining neighborhoods.

I suppose bribing your local officials counts as 'changing your government'.

Date: 2006-01-25 09:48 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] herbaliser.livejournal.com
I also have a feeling the NIMBY principle will make these work.

casino trivia

Date: 2006-01-29 12:23 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jozafiend.livejournal.com
Riverboat casinos work because they are specifically authorized by legislation in each state where they exist. The comparison is a "cruise to nowhere" that operate in international waters, like what exists off the coast of Florida and New York (used to? still? don't know) Even then, states pass further laws making the cruise to nowhere difficult, saying for gambling to be legal, the cruise must offer a destination other than state x where it originated. So yea, laws can/will be passed to close loopholes. It is great the loopholes can frequently be made quicker than the legal plugs. Go Women on Waves!

Date: 2006-01-25 11:41 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] perich.livejournal.com
How do you serve a warrant or collect evidence on international waters?

Date: 2006-01-26 04:02 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ernunnos.livejournal.com
If you're going to stay on international waters until the statute of limitations expires, that probably qualifies as "moving".

Date: 2006-01-25 08:48 pm (UTC)