Blindness to two existing child-specific rights

The Guide [to the forthcoming referendum] cites one of two existing Constitutional rights of children, namely the corollary of Article 42.4: “The State shall provide for free primary education…” and the second child-specific right, which the Commission has chosen not to inform voters of, and which is, and has been shown to be relevant to voters.

It is the right of a child to attend any school which is in receipt of public funding without attending religious instruction there, and to do so in a manner which is not ‘prejudicial’ to that child.

This right is embedded in Article 44.4.2. Its omission is remarkable for several reasons: the situation which the Whittaker Commission on the Constitution found in schools (in 1996) was held by it to be unconstitutional; the Irish Human Rights Commission seminar on this matter in 2010, reported with findings and recommendations in April, 2011.

Minister for Education, Ruairi Quinn, appointed Professor Coolahan and colleagues to address this and related issues and they reported with recommendations in April, 2012.

These recommendations in relation to the majority of schools, ie rural, stand-alone schools, have not been accepted by the Government.

It is regrettable to assert the obvious: the all-citizen funded Referendum Commission is insufficiently independent.

John Colgan, Michael McKillen and Dick Spicer

TwoRightsNow.org

Seaview Terrace

Dublin 4