The Gazette 1973

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both such fine and such imprisonment. (3) Nothing in this section shall affect the law as to contempt of court. Comment This Scction is so broad in its terminology and in its implications that I believe that it is the most far reach- ing curtailment of Civil Rights contained in the legisla- tion, particularly since it does not relate specifically to illegal organisations or to an attempt to "clamp down on the I.R.A." The Minister described this section in the debate as the creation of a statutory form of what was hitherto known as contempt of court but under sub-section 3—nothing in this section "shall affect the law as to contempt of court". Indeed the section goes far beyond the present law relating to contempt of court. Sub-section 1 defines the meaning of constituting "an interference with the course of justice" as in- cluding any statement, meeting, procession or demon- stration likely directly or indirectly to influence the institution, conduct/or defence of any Civil or Criminal Proceedings as to whether or how the pro- ceedings should be instituted, conducted, continued or defended or as to what should be their outcome. Some members of the legal profession who are reasonably outspohen on judgments of the courts might find them- selves in breach of these provisions! Similarly any per- son who gathers near a crowd or follows upon a pro- cession might find himself within the terms or sub- section 2. There is no definition of "taking part" in a meeting, procession or demonstration and yet the penal- ties are very substantial amounting on indictment to a possible imprisonment for five years. It has been accepted in the United States that there must be a certainty in the law which would allow an individual to know whether by his conduct he would be committ- ing a criminal offence. Statutes which do not comply with this in having a sufficient degree of certainty have been struck down as being unconstitutionally vague. This section would appear to be broad enough to allow a similar line of reasoning to be pursued before the Irish courts. It is not necessary for the person to have any specific mens rea to interfere with the course of justice if his statement is likely to influence a party to Civil Proceedings as to whether these should be insti- tuted, conducted, continued or defended. If so this would be sufficient to be an interference to the course of justice. I wonder how many members of the legal profession reading this feel as confident as the Minister for Justice was that it only incapsulatcs in statutory form the hitherto well known offence of contempt of court? Section 5 (5) The definition of "document" in section 2 of the Act of 1939 is hereby amended by the insertion ofter "advertisement' 'of the following: "and also— (a) Any map, plan, graph or drawing. (b) any photograph. (c) any disc, tape, sound track or other device in which sound or other data (not being visual images) are embodied so as to be capable (with or without the aid of some other equipment of being reproduced there- from, and

(d) any film, microfilm, negative, tape or other device in which one or more visual images are embodied (whether with or without sounds or other data) so as to be capable (as aforesaid) of being reproduced there- from and a reproduction or still reproduction of the image or images embodied therein whether enlarged or not and whether with or without sounds or other data." Comment In his analysis in thé Senate debate of this Section, Senator Horgan showed very effectively the danger of broad definition sections. This section refers back to the definition of "document" in the 1939 Act and the extended definition of "seditious document" in section 3 of that Act which provides "seditious document is a document in which words, abbreviations or symbols re- ferable to a military body are used in referring to an unlawful organisation." And he continues : "By adding to the definition of 'document' the definition in para- graph (c) of this section we are adding a vast amount of material which is commonly available in this country at present to the category not only of document but of seditious document. There are numbers of ballad groups in this country who sing songs about or purport- ing to be about an organisation known as the I.R.A. Many of these ballad groups have cut records into which these songs are permanently inscribed and which are sold all over the country." He then goes on to show the implications for the balladeers, for the shops in which these records are sold and for those who happen to have these records in their possession. This may sound far fetched, but it is the duty of members of the Oireachtas to scrutinise legislation so that it does not emerge in a form which is ambiguous or far reach- ing or at certain points ridiculous. Conclusion This is an Act which provoked a very strong reaction when it was published. Various criticisms were made of its provisions, and it was described both here and in Britain as an usparallelled extension of governmental power and thereby a restriction on the rights and freedoms of the individual. None of these criticisms lost any validity when bombs went off in Dublin on Friday 1st December, but the Bill was law forty-eight hours later. There are lessons to be learned, political lessons about the strength of our institutions under pressure, from this sad and disheartening experience. [Editorial Note : The views expressed in this con- tributed article are the personal views of the author; they are not the views of the Council, particularly when they impinge on the political sphere. The Editor is prepared to publish suitable comments justifying this legislation if submitted.] Notice Clement Mason, deceased, late of 55 Monkstown Road, Dun Laoire, Co. Dublin. Will any person having any knowledge of a will of the above- mentioned deceased, who died on 2 January 1973, please communicate with : Messrs. Arthur Cox & Co., Solicitors, 42-3 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2.

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