(Vatican Radio) Irish voters are being asked to decide on a change in the Constitution
which the government says will give stronger rights to children. Those in favour of
the amendment say it will strengthen child protection legislation, but some opponents
of the measure claim it will hand too much power to Government agencies.
“I
suppose the main issues would be, you know, for people who might be a bit sceptical
about it, is it needed and would it give the state too much power of intervention
in the lives of families… The proponents of it say it’s necessary because the state
at the moment can’t offer sufficient protection to children who are in very bad situations”,
says David Quinn, from the Dublin based Iona Institute for Religion and the Family.
Polls
opened at 9am local time Saturday morning despite a last-minute challenge from the
Irish Supreme Court.
The five-judge court ruled that the government's information
booklet urging a ``yes'' vote, mailed to every household in this country of 4.6 million,
was not fully accurate and violated referendum laws.
Ireland's 1937 constitution
can be amended only through national referendums. Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s interview
with David Quinn