Lack of time hampers referendum campaign

Severe time constraints and voter apathy are the main obstacles facing the Referendum Commission in its efforts to raise public awareness of the issues being voted on in the June 7th referendums.

The Commission chairman, Mr Justice Tom Finlay, said today that time constraints would impede the body’s primary objectives, which were to try to inform the public and generate a "significant" public debate on three distinct subjectsbeing voted on.

The three referendums propose the abolition of references to the death penalty in the Constitution, Ireland’s acceptance of the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and the Treaty of Nice.

The Commission, which has a budget of£4.5 million, has released a brief brochure outlining the various proposals to be voted on, and the two main pro- and anti-Treaty of Nice groups.

Mr Finlay said that it was originally intended to send this brochure to every one of the 1.3 million households in the State, but this would not be possible by June 7th. Instead, a text-only self-mailing document will be delivered to these households by May 25th.

The Government established the current Commission on April 17th, approved their proposed public information documents on May 4th and announced the referendums on May 8th. "This means our time restraints are very considerable indeed," Mr Finlay said.

"Our feeling undoubtedly would be the desirability of a more extended date," he said. "However, the Government is under no legal obligation to provide more time. This curtails the capacity of the Commission greatly."

The Commission has also placed newspaper ads inviting submissions from interested groups which will be presented to the electorate.

"We will examine all arguments made for and against, asking are they rational, are they relevant and is there any question of mistatement of fact.

"We will go right down the middle, and try to give as simple, lucid, clear description of the issues as possible," he said.

The arguments will then be presented to the electorate by way of extensive newspaper, television and radio campaigns and in public places like libraries and post offices. There are also plans to launch a website, www.refcom.ie, later next week.

Apathy was also a constraint to the Commission work, the Ombudsman Mr Kevin Murphy said, noting that 90 per cent of the Dáil supported the referendums.

"You miss the cut-and-thrust of political infighting ... when the debate is so one-sided," he claimed. "Hopefully there will be a good debate on the Nice Treaty."

The Commission was established under the Referendum Act of 1998 to ensure a balanced debate on all referendums could be held. It comprises four ordinary members - the Clerk of the Dáil, the Clerk of the Seanad, the Omdudsman and the Comptroller and Auditor General - as well as a specially nominated Chairman.