Church power weakened

IRELAND VOTES FOR DIVORCE

AT LAST, the ban on divorce is gone.  In the past few 
years, issues concerning the family and the place of 
women have been at the centre of Irish politics - in part 
because Catholic church thinking has long dominated 
these areas of life in Ireland.  Things first began to 
change for the better in the early 1970s when women 
began to fight back against Church rule.  Contraception 
was demanded and won.  

Later access to information on abortion, and abortion 
facilities in England, was fought for and won - though 
in a very restricted context.  (Let us not forget that as 
many as 6,000 Irish women travel to England every year 
to have an abortion because it remains illegal in the 26 
counties.)  Now, with the recent Divorce Referendum, a 
restricted form of divorce will be allowed.  Another 
blow has been struck against the Catholic church that 
fought its hardest to prevent any change occurring.

  The 'yes' campaign won by the narrowest of margins - 
by less than half of one per cent of all the votes cast.  
The turnout of the electorate was approximately 61%.  
Even up to the very end the result was in doubt and a 
full re-count of all votes cast was necessary in order to 
confirm the result.  Nevertheless, the majority was 
clearly for 'yes' and clearly for divorce.    

Across the twenty-six counties the changes since 1986 - 
when the last referendum on divorce was held - were 
definite, and in some places dramatic.  Swings to the 
'yes' side varied between 10% and 20%, the highest 
being recorded in the working-class constituency of 
Dublin Central.  In all 16 constituencies voted 'yes' and 
25 voted 'no'.  

Even predominantly rural constituencies such as Kerry 
South held respectable swings to the 'yes' campaign, 
this despite the complete lack of a 'yes' campaign in 
many of these areas.  Two constituencies that 
eventually voted 'no' - Waterford and Wexford - still 
recorded two of the largest swings to the 'yes' side.  This 
is one of the better aspects of the referendum compared 
with the vote in 1986.  This time around those 
supporting divorce were not just concentrated in 
Dublin.  This indicates a broader and more substantial 
move away from Catholic Church control in Ireland 
than in previous times.

FREEDOM

The Divorce Referendum, though conservative in 
terms of what it proposed, was from the very beginning 
about much more.  As the 'yes' and 'no' campaigns 
heated up in the weeks before the vote, two clear views 
about the way Irish society should be became apparent.  
Those supporting the 'no' side were intent on retaining 
control over the individual and what the individual 
does.  Those who supported the 'yes' campaign wanted 
the arena of individual freedom enlarged.  This is why 
we, as anarchists, were involved in the referendum.  

Perhaps no one understood the issues in such a clear 
light as those who were behind the 'no' campaign - the 
Catholic Right.  They were well organised, they had 
plenty of money (including American money) and they 
weren't afraid of the issues.  They believe in 
authoritarian solutions to the problems in Irish society 
and they believe in forcing things down people's 
throats.  

Arguing that the 'common good' must come first, they 
excused away the reality of marriage breakdown in 
Ireland with a total disregard for the individuals 
involved - be they women, men or children.  Their 
attitude was 'Put Up or Shut Up'- and it was this 
approach that was eventually rejected by the 'yes' 
victory.  The campaign fought by the Catholic Right was 
committed and forceful.  A response that was in sharp 
contrast to that of the Government.  

If ever there was a liability for the 'no' campaign, it was 
having the Government on its side.  The Government 
led the 'yes' campaign, they controlled the money, they 
even tried to set the agenda of debate - in the end they 
nearly lost it for everyone.  By their very presence they 
stymied initiative.  The 'yes' campaign got off the 
ground late, it lacked any initial willingness to tackle 
Catholic Church hypocrisy and it pussy-footed around 
all the main issues - the 'cost of divorce', the alleged 
effects on children, etc.  

Worst of all, and perhaps this is their lasting legacy, the 
Government have lumbered the people with the 
disgraceful provision - now enshrined in the 
Constitution! - that one must separate for at least four 
years before you can entertain the idea of a divorce.  
This, we have argued, is an affront to every person who 
goes through the trauma of a broken marriage.

COMPASSION

The 'yes' campaign was very broad, and it stood for 
different things at different times.  Some of the 
arguments that it used were good - the arguments for 
'divorce as a civil right' for instance, or the argument 
for the separation of Church and State'.  Yet there were 
other ideas in the 'yes' campaign that we, as anarchists, 
had no truck with.  We did not participate in the 
campaign for divorce so as 'to strengthen the institution 
of marriage'.  Many of the political parties argued for 
divorce along these lines - quite illogically in our 
opinion.  

The Workers Solidarity Movement said straight out 
that divorce will weaken the institution of marriage, 
and that this is a good thing.  We are for choice in life, 
and for respect for the individual.  We believe that 
people, on the whole, act carefully and responsibly with 
their lives.  Most of all we do not believe that you need 
a law to keep you in a relationship with another person 
- we think the idea is actually absurd.  Our partners in 
this life are our own business and the 'yes' victory was 
one small step towards bringing this a little closer.  That 
is why we fought hard for a 'yes' vote.  

The big loser in this referendum was the Catholic 
Church.  They have, especially in times past, wielded 
great power in the twenty-six county state.  They have 
wielded it disgracefully - punishing people who don't 
hold with Church views, encouraging chauvinism and 
intolerance of the worst kind.  Despite their Christian 
rhetoric, they have rarely shown an iota of 
'compassion' for anyone.  For this reason alone victory 
is sweet.

CONTROL

But the Catholic Church continues to be a very 
powerful force in Ireland.  This should not be forgotten.  
It still retains huge influence in schools, hospitals and 
in the local community.  It also retains huge support 
among the main political parties - Fianna Fail, Fine 
Gael and Labour.  The campaign to remove the Catholic 
Church from Irish society, where they survive at the tax 
payers' expense, still has a long way to go.  

The successful 'yes' vote did show however that we can 
win - most importantly against superior forces, with 
greater resources.  It is a victory for all those who did the 
merest bit to encourage a 'yes' vote.  But there is also a 
warning in the narrowness of the victory.  

The Catholic Right is now a force in Irish society.  And 
they are organising in a more political direction.  They 
are committed and strong and they have money.  They 
want to bring Ireland back to an era when no one 
questioned anything, when women stayed at home 
because they were forced to.  From now on the Catholic 
Right will fight tooth and nail on every issue of 
importance to them.  There is still a long struggle ahead 
to beat them once and for all.

Kevin Doyle


