The Gazette 1977

GAZETTE

1977

The Resolution "That the Solicitors' Apprentices'

Debating Society of Ireland is worthy of the support of

Solicitors' Apprentices, of the Council of the

Incorporated Law Society of Ireland, and of the

Solicitors' profession" was proposed by Senator Mary

Robinson, President of CHERISH. In the course of her

speech, Senator Robinson said.

Despite the firm and repeated commitment by the

Government that it will introduce a constitutional

amendment to regularise the law and practice relating to

adoption there has been no indication of the precise

nature of this amendment. Meanwhile, seven months have

gone by and now we are into an election year. It is most

important that the Government's intention be carried out,

but also that the scope of the proposed amendment be

broadened to ensure that it redresses the present

imbalance in the Constitution and provides a clear

statement of the rights of children and of their equality

before the law.

Earlier this week the Irish Council for Civil Liberties

made specific proposals and suggested a form of wording

of any such amendment. The report emphasised four

points:

Firstly, that the rights of parents should continue to be

guaranteed but should no longer be defined as

imprescriptible or inalienable. This would make it possible

for legitimate children to be adopted in cases where their

parents had abandoned them or seriously illtreated them

— instead of spending their young lives in institutions or

fosterage as many do at present.

Secondly, a new balance should be established between

the rights of parents and children's rights. The 1937

Constitution is biased in favour of the rights of parents.

Thirdly, the protection of the rights of children should

be recognised as a special responsibility of the State, which

would involve independent legal representation for

children where their interests require it.

Fourthly, discrimination between children based on

parentage alone should be prohibited. The precise

wording recommended to achieve this position would

require an addition of a new subsection to Article 41 as

follows:

"Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied to

any child on the basis of status at birth or parentage."

That statement, inserted in the Constitution would

ensure the abolition of the legal concept of illegitimacy,

and would prevent a legal distinction being made between

the constitutional rights and protection afforded to a

family based on marriage and one not based on marriage.

I believe there is considerable and growing support in

the community for such a reform and that public attitudes

and prejudices would change even more quickly if the

Government were prepared to give a lead. The law is not

neutral on this point — it both reflects and influences

public attitudes. For that reason it would be unrealistic to

wait until there was overwhelming support for such a

move — the moral responsibility for leadership must be

accepted.

The constitutional and legal position is important but

forms only part of the picture. Lawyers should also have

a deep concern for the social dimension. The world

through the eyes of a single mother is a difficult and some

times hostile environment in which she suffers a

cumulative series of disadvantages. Being a woman she

can expect to fill the lower paid jobs and to be

discriminated against in access to employment,

promotion, training and pension rights. If she was

employed before her child was bom it may be difficult or

impossible for her to return to her job. The absence of

adequate nursery facilities, and in particular the lack of

any state-subsidised nursery for a child under 10 months,

is a great hardship. If her job involved working on

Saturdays, such as in a shop, hotel or laundry, it could

easily cost £5 to get a childminder for the day. She has to

cope alone with problems of accommodation hire

purchase agreements, etc. She may feel isolated and alone

in coping with decisions affecting her child and in

particular the child's relationship with its father. She may

have to decide whether to bring affiliation proceedings,

whether to encourage a relationship between child and

father (who may be a married man) and worry about how

to ensure the balanced emotional development of her

child.

So far the Irish community has been slow to respond

and to provide adequate supports and services in order

to help the single mother cope with this cumulative series

of problems.

Only one local "housing authority — Cork City — has

been prepared to recognise the single mother and child as

a family unit which should receive favourable

consideration in the housing list. The Health Boards

acknowledge a general responsibility for giving advice

and help but lack specialised personnel. There are no

subsidised nurseries for children under 10 months and

very few for pre-school children. The working single

mother could expect to pay an average of £7-£8 a week

on nursery fees. Alternatively, she and her child could try

to learn to live on £14.30 a week, rising to £15.65 in

April.

Clearly, the Health Boards should increase their

involvement at two levels: firstly, by providing and

subsidising nurseries that cater for very young children —

with a higher ratio of qualified staff, and secondly, by

developing daily child-minding and compiling a register to

ensure proper standards and safeguards.

A conscious attempt should be made to provide an

adequate advice service throughout the country, and not

just in Dublin and the cities. It has been the experience of

Cherish that about 25% of the girls who contact them

each year have left their home in the country to seek help

in Dublin and have an immediate problem of

accomodation, job finding etc. Either there is no

community service in their locality or they lack

confidence in the service offered.

We have become increasingly aware of, and alarmed

by, the high abortion figures for Irish women going over

to England for that purpose. Yet we seem reluctant to

take elementary steps to reduce that figure — by a

comprehensive system of family planning advice and

services, and by creating a caring supportive community

environment for the single mother who has rejected that

option and decided to have her child and to assume all the

r e s p o n s i b i l i t i es

s i n g le

pa r e n t.

This Resolution was duly seconded by the President,

Mr. Bruce St. John Blake, who said:

Before bringing this meeting to a close I am very glad

to be afforded the opportunity of expressing certain

personally held views which I am satisfied reflect the

attitude of the Solicitors' Profession on the entire subject

of Family Law in the Republic of Ireland and with

particular reference to the question of illegitimacy.

It is both the right and the duty of lawyers to speak out

loudly and clearly to the community to point out defects

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