Labour leader Eamon Gilmore has called on voters to make “a quiet, dignified statement” by voting Yes in the forthcoming referendum on the rights of children.
The Tánaiste this morning warned that the proposed constitutional amendment would not “solve all our problems” but would ensure that the State was better equipped to protect children.
Mr Gilmore said the referendum would give children the right to be heard not just seen in Ireland’s Constitution and laws.
He told the launch of his party’s referendum campaign that the State had “kowtowed” to the churches for years in relation to children, but the November 10th vote offered the opportunity to put that right.
He said the first Labour leader Tom Johnson had written an explicit commitment to children in the first Dáil when he stated that it was the State’s “first duty” to make provision for their welfare.
However, these words were “written out of the script” when the Constitution was written two decades later and children were relegated to “second-class status”, he said.
“Some of the darkest moments in our history came as a result of children’s interests being ignored. This is the chance to put this wrong right,” he said.
Mr Gilmore rejected the contention of No campaigners that children’s rights were already protected in law and the Constitution, adding that the Constitution did accord the family rights but gave no distinct rights to children. The absence of these rights had caused difficulties, he said.
The Tánaiste expressed concern about the possibility of a low voter turnout because there was not the same degree of “competitive verve and controversy” surrounding the referendum.
There was a strong turnout of Labour TDs for the launch, at which director of elections Kathleen Lynch said the amendment would give children confidence that their voices were being heard and taken into account.
“This referendum will ensure that children are recognised in their own right. It provides for a fair balance between the rights of the child and the role of the State.”
