Community and voluntary organisations are afraid to criticise Government policy in case their funding is cut, according to a report on civil society in Ireland and the UK.
Focus Ireland founder Sr Stan Kennedy said state-funded organisations had to seek clearance for press releases and publications from Government departments before they are released.
"There is a worryingly wide range of methods used in Irish society to stifle the voices of those who advocate on behalf of the marginalised," she said.
Sr Kennedy claimed funding to organisations which caused "embarrassment or discomfort" faced funding cuts, while anonymous "official sources" were quoted by media outlets "to discredit the work of NGOs".
The commission of inquiry into the future of civil society in Ireland and the UK found concern that dissent was limited because organisations were fearful of funding cuts if they criticised government policy, according to commissioner Seamus McAleavey.
"More than any other issue, those who took part in the Inquiry's consultations in Ireland were concerned about voicing dissent," he said.
This morning's launch of the report was chaired by former general secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions Peter Cassells and addressed by Maureen Gaffney, chairwoman of the National Economic and Social Forum.
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