The Ruby Isle

Many onlookers – both in and outside the Emerald Isle – could be forgiven for thinking they had somehow wandered into a time warp. It’s been 21 years since the X Case sparked a fierce debate on abortion in Ireland. Órla Ryan looks at how precious little has changed over the last two decades.

Image c/o WorldAbortionLaws.com

DEFYING its natural and expected tendency to be green, Ireland sits as a lone red spec on this particular map. 

Flanked by the pale blue depths of the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea, our little country provides a shameful global centre piece.

The World Abortion Laws map indicates which nations have legalised abortion and to what extent. Red indicates that abortion is prohibited outrightly or allowed if the mother’s life is deemed at risk.

Irish law on the subject, or rather the lack thereof, is less progressive than similar legislation in many developing countries, including India – birthplace of Savita Halappanavar.

Her tragic death last year re-ignited one of the most schism-inducing debates in Ireland.

Mrs Halappanavar (31) was 17 weeks pregnant and miscarrying when she attended Galway University Hospital on October 21.

Her husband Praveen claims they were told "this is a Catholic country” and refused a termination due to the presence of a foetal heartbeat.

An official investigation has found that an abortion had the potential to save her life.

“When you peel the layer, there are extremely conservative cultural practices that continue [in this country],” notes gender equality expert Dr Nata Duvvury.

“Ireland has exported its problems to the UK,” she adds. Approximately 4,000 women travel from Ireland to the UK for a termination each year.

In January, the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children held three days of hearings on abortion. The Government is due to announce plans for legislation in the near future – however confusion remains supreme as to whether or not a suicide risk clause will be incorporated.

“We also have a rampant epidemic of mental illness which is not recognised [in the abortion debate],” maintains Dr Duvvury.

The women's rights activist lectures in NUI Galway’s School of Political Science & Sociology and approaches the abortion argument from a developmental angle – namely the impact it has on women’s health and maternal mortality, poverty and population control.

At the UN-organised International Conference on Population and Development in Egypt in 1994, 179 governments signed a commitment to prevent unsafe abortions. Since then over 25 of these countries have liberated abortion laws, while a handful have tightened legal restrictions. 

In developing countries, a woman dies as a result of an unsafe abortion every eight minutes – this accounts for 13pc of maternal mortality deaths globally. Approximately 68,000 such procedures are carried out annually.

A woman’s bodily autonomy is something we often take for granted in the western world.

“Abortion is actually code for a much larger discussion on women’s empowerment,” states Dr Duvvury.

Research in India has shown that many impoverished women who have their ‘tubes tied’ as a result of medical advice view the process as one which enables them, possibly secretly, to end the patriarchal control their partners often exercise over their bodies.

Abortion isn’t the only reproduction-related area which exits in a legislative vacuum in Ireland. Yesterday, the genetic parents of twins born to a surrogate won their landmark High Court case to have the biological mother legally recognised as such.

During the case, Mr Justice Abbott rejected submissions by the State that the pro-life Constitutional amendment confirmed the birth mother as the legal mother.

Scientific and medical developments have long since overtaken their legal counterparts here.

This fact was further emphasised by the media coverage garnered by a feature on Today FM’s Ray D’Arcy Show last week.

Mr D’Arcy condemned the State for failing to legislate on issues surrounding IVF treatment – something the UK did in 1990. "I think on this occasion the law is an ass," he said.

The host made the comments following an emotional interview with a listener who told him she had wanted to use her late husband’s sperm to have children, but was informed it would be destroyed.

The sperm was stored in the Human Assisted Reproduction Ireland Clinic in Dublin’s Rotunda Hospital since the man was diagnosed with cancer in 2010 and advised he may be unable to conceive following treatment.

Upon making his donation, he had to sign a contract that stated his sperm would be destroyed if he died.

Following a public outcry, managers at the clinic agreed to meet the woman in an attempt to resolve the issue.

Another listener rang in and told a very similar story, but with an ending that did lead to their destruction of her late husband’s sperm and, with it, her dreams of a child.

HARI’s Ray Skelly appeared on a later edition on the programme and admitted the current legal situation is a “dog’s dinner”.

He stated that posthumous sperm use should be possible in certain cases and legislation needs to be put in place in order to “reflect the changes in Irish society”.

Recommendations on the subject from 2005 have never been acted on.

The area of reproductive rights is obviously an extremely sensitive one, but the failure of successive governments to implement any form of legislative framework is shameful and indicative of the reactive, not proactive, stance taken by so many of our public representatives.

Our red light may not turn green any time soon, but it should at least start flashing amber – on a number of lanes.



Global abortion rates are available here.

Clientelist Culture - Holding Back Ireland's Political Policies?

Image c/o Broadsheet.ie

THE IRISH political system is littered with oddities - before one even begins to discuss individuals. Some of these anomalies have led to the culture of clientelism that exists in our country. TDs have two roles - firstly that of legislator and, secondly, local dignitary and promoter. In Irish eyes, the latter is usually deemed more important.

Political parties often choose to contest an election on local issues¹, to the detriment of policy formation and legislation. And who could blame them? From 1922-1997, 34 per cent of TDs who lost their seats did so to a running mate. Our electoral system - Proportional Representation by means of a Single Transferable Vote in a Multi-Seat Constituency (PR-STV) - pits members of the same party against each other. Given the fact they cannot differentiate themselves from their peers on ideological issues, they must do so in terms of constituency work. In the 2002 General Election, the 14 Independent seats went to candidates who argued that their constituencies were not receiving enough government funding, particularly in terms of the ever-emotive area of health services.²

Clientelism exists for a number of reasons. Ireland's colonial background has created a history of alienation from central government, stemming back to British Rule. The urban-rural divide or 'us and them' mentality is also a factor in this regard. In the 1960s Basil Chubb, one of the first political commentators of the modern era, stated: "For generations, Irish people saw that, to get the benefits the public authorities bestow, the help of a man with connections and influence was necessary. All that democracy has meant is that such a man has been laid on officially, as it were, and is now no longer a master but a servant."³

Article 16.2.6 of the 1937 Irish Constitution states that a TD can represent a maximum of 30,000 citizens. One might assume that this relatively small ratio would enable politicians to spend the majority of their time focusing on their primary role of legislator. This, however, is not the case. The scale of society means that TDs can hold up to four 'clinics' a week, where they listen to the grievances of their constituents and, essentially, are asked for favours.

Many people still hold the opinion that one must know someone with "pull" in order to receive the State benefits they are entitled to. However, politicians often access facilities rather than provide them. They have experience of dealing with our particular brand of bureaucracy and know how to navigate the often complex maze that is Irish red tape. Meticulous applications for planning permission and social welfare benefits could well be as effective, if not more so, than supposed political intervention. Whether or not TDs actually exercise any influence on a decision that affects their constituency, or a member of it, is much debated. It has been claimed that they rarely objectively impact such decisions but merely create imaginary patronage through an "illusion of assistance" aided by advance knowledge of the outcome.³

This type of activity is systemic and cabinet ministers are seemingly as prone to engage in the process of brokerage as their lesser-known peers. The resignation of the Junior Minister for Health, Labour's Róisín Shortall, in September - over what she labelled "stroke politics" by Minister for Health James Reilly - highlighted this fact. Two locations in his north Dublin constituency were added to a list of places chosen for primary care centres on the evening before they were announced by the Government. The HSE and Ms Shortall had drawn up a priority list of locations in terms of need for the service. On it, Balbriggan ranked 44th and Swords was placed in 130th position. There were 36 locations on the final list. Despite near constant allegations, Mr Reilly has repeatedly denied localism played a part in the last minute additions. Last week's austere budget has deflected some attention from this particular issue but the argument still rumbles on.

Clientelism keeps politicians in touch with local issues but, unfortunately, its negative consequences far outweigh the positive ones. Clientelism disorganises the poor and vulnerable in society as it prevents them from grouping together and attempting to bring about real social and political change.³ It increases resentment and a feeling of exclusion for those who disagree with or do not engage in the practice.³ It also makes it extremely difficult for new politicians to break through and pump much needed fresh blood into the body of the Irish government.³

President Michael D Higgins previously stated that clientelism "seriously sells us short and distracts attention from the real basis of economic exploitation, political domination and ideological manipulation in Irish society".³ It seems that the process, like many contentious Irish political issues, isn't going away any time soon. Perhaps if our elected representatives spent more time dealing with their primary role of policy making, better decisions - both in terms of investment and cutbacks - might be made.


References:

¹ Adshead, M and Tonge, J (2009) Politics in Ireland, Palgrave Macmillan
² Gallagher, M; Marsh, M and Mitchell, P (2003) How Ireland Voted 2002, Palgrave Macmillan
³ Higgins, MD (2008) Causes for Concern: Irish Politics, Culture and Society, Liberties Press

Time For An End To Closet Homophobia

Image c/o OutNews.co.uk

SEXUAL ORIENTATION is often viewed as irrelevant in western society, particularly in the eyes of young people. Despite this, sexuality-centred bullying and the use of gay-related derogatory termas are alarmingly common. Is this immature name-calling nothing more than just that or does it signify something more insidious? In Ireland, homosexuality was only decriminalised nineteen years ago. As a nation, do we still hold on to outdated but deep-rooted prejudices or is homophobia a part of our past?

Undoubtedly, this country has come a long way where the issue of gay rights in concerned. Mary McAleese's recent declaration of support for marriage equality will go down as a momentous occasion in Irish history. The former president, who is an active member of the Catholic Church, stated that gay people should be able to live their lives on their own terms and marry if they so choose. "I just think that people have this obsession somehow around sexuality with the idea of sex, forgetting what it is that family and partnership is about - it's about love and being there for another human being," she said.

Ciara Keighron (18) agrees with this stance. "Love is love, it doesn't matter who it's for. You can't say one person's love is better than another's," she says. Ciara is openly gay at college but her family do not know the truth about her sexuality. She cites fear as the main reason for this as "certain members of my family and friends definitely won't accept it". She has not experienced a lot of discrimination in Galway but recalls one particular occasion where a drunk man called her and a friend "f***ing lesbos" on a night out. She feels homophobes should not use alcohol as an excuse to disguise their bigotry as the truth often comes out when people have been drinking. "It's a case of idiots saying things, as opposed to idiots thinking things," she remarks.

Seán Reilly (21) came out two years ago. A close friend of his had actually come out in the months preceding this and he was the first person he told. He began to question his sexuality around the age of 14 but was not comfortable enough to come out while at school. He is a firm believer that our education system is doing a disservice to Irish society by not teaching children more about the various types of sexuality. He also thinks the government need to "remove the barriers" currently stopping gay people from marrying and adopting. "I would like to think that [gay marriage] will be legal by the time I want to marry," he adds.

Kealan Moore (30) would also like marriage and children to feature in his future. He has been sure of his sexuality for some time but did not come out publicly until last year. "I had been struggling with it for years and I tried to come out when I was 18 but, at the time, I just didn't have the proper social structure around me," he says.  Although most people received the news well, his housemate did not and he almost ended up homeless as a result. "You learn that you can't live with certain people," he muses. He admits that coming out can be a huge learning curve for both the person themselves and those close to them.

Ian Power, of youth-centred charity SpunOut, agrees that telling people is not always easy but, if you choose someone you trust, the chances are they will be supportive. "Coming out as LGBT can be a hugely positive experience – a liberating time, when you embrace your sexuality. Whatever your sexual identity, remember it is only one part of your life, so embrace how you are feeling and enjoy being individual," he says.

He believes that Ireland has made significant progress in battling homophobia in the last ten years alone. "Society is much more accepting of LGBT people across all generations. We still have a long way to go and prejudice still exists in dark corners of society and the LGBT community is still fighting for many legal protections and rights which still have not been recognised by the state but my view of Ireland is certainly a positive one," he affirms.

Figures released earlier this month by the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network show that every county in Ireland has now hosted a civil partnership ceremony, with 862 couples entering into such partnerships since they were first legalised in April 2011. A recent 'Sunday Times' poll suggested that 66 per cent of people in Ireland are in favour of same-sex marriage. Sexuality is a single aspect of a multi-dimensional person - it does not define them, nor should it define their rights or the way they are treated. Ireland, it would seem, is now more aware of this fact than ever before. 


This article was also published in Student Independent News, NUI Galway's student newspaper.