Children’s rights must be enshrined in the Constitution

DO children matter in Ireland? The obvious answer and the one that would be given by anyone asked such an obvious question is yes, of course they do.

We value our children. We value childhood. And yet in the years since the last Presidential election Irish society has had to confront uncomfortable truths about our silence in the face of horrific abuse suffered by children in the institutions we condoned and supported. We have been faced with the harsh realities of the ways we failed children who grew up on the margins of our society, neglected, abused and abandoned. Children who died too young because they had little to live for.

In the years since the last Presidential election, we have been richer than at any time in our history and we have suffered the worst recession we have faced to date. We have seen the gap between rich and poor grow exponentially and seen those at the bottom of the economic pile pushed further into deprivation and disadvantage. The recession has not proved an equaliser between the haves and have nots. While it has increased the hardship faced by many, it has been particularly devastating for those living in long-term poverty.

There has been much talk during the current Presidential campaign about the need to move away from talk of the past to talk of the present and the future. And we cannot talk about our future without talking about our children. They are the foundation on which the future of Ireland will be built. If we fail to redress the mistakes of the past by making better choices for children in the present we miss another opportunity to provide our children with a future full of hope and potential.

2011 has been a year of substantial change for children in Ireland. For the first time in our history, children are directly represented at the Cabinet table by a Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. Children now have a Government Department dedicated to their cause. For the first time since the birth of our Republic, we are embarking on the strategic redevelopment of child welfare and protection services and establishing a single agency with responsibility for the national implementation of accountable and consistent services for children at risk of abuse and neglect. In relation to our children, we have come a long way.

Yet the bedrock of the Irish state continues to be silent on children. Despite promises from both the last and the current Government to enshrine their rights within it, children remain absent from the Irish Constitution. The Constitution represents the basis of the social and legal mores of our society. It is the document that should represent the core principles that we as a nation stand for. The conspicuous absence of distinct children’s rights in the Irish Constitution represents the ongoing failure of our society to prioritise children.

In the 2010 Saving Childhood Poll, 62% of adults indicated that they would vote in favour of the insertion of children’s rights into the Constitution. A constitutional amendment on children’s rights isn’t just another piece of paper, it is a statement of intent and a solid promise which can be used by children and their advocates to challenge any system that fails to uphold their rights. It gives a voice to the children, who have been voiceless for too long. The referendum to strengthen children’s rights in the Constitution is long overdue; 2012 must be the year that we finally make a firm commitment to children and childhood.

The ninth President of Ireland will, like all those who have gone before, swear to maintain and uphold the Constitution. The role of the President and the difference they can make for citizens is often questioned. What difference can the next President of Ireland make to the lives of children in Ireland? In her 1997 inauguration speech President Mary McAleese quoted former President Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh, who said at his inauguration in 1974: “Presidents, under the Irish Constitution don’t have policies. But.... a President can have a theme.” Not only can the President of Ireland have a theme, they can set a tone. Both Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese established strong foundations for presidency based on tolerance, social justice and a belief in community. The President represents the voice of all Irish citizens beyond all political and ideological lines; and should especially be a voice for those who are marginalised, forgotten and silent in our society.

The President is a symbol of what Ireland stands for both at home and abroad. In her inaugural speech, Mary Robinson said: “Symbols give us our identity, our self image, our way of explaining ourselves to ourselves and to others. Symbols in turn determine the kinds of stories we tell; and the stories we tell determine the kind of history we make and remake.”

Now is the time to write a new chapter in the story of children in Ireland. We have an opportunity to remake the history that has failed so many children. The ninth President of Ireland must be the symbol for this change and embody our renewed vision for childhood in Ireland.

- Norah Gibbons is advocacy director with Barnardos