Blasphemy Law in Ireland

Ireland to vote on removal of Blasphemy as an offence from the constitution

On October 26, the same day the elections for the Irish president will be held, Irish voters are tasked to vote on the 37th amendment bill to the Irish constitution from 1937.
The referendum, if approved by voters, will eliminate the ban of “the publication or utterance of blasphemous, seditious, or indecent matter”.

Irish Times: Blasphemy referendum offers chance to remove dangerous law

While many see the article in the constitution as outdated and not compatible with a modern democratic republic that is based on the separation of state and church, some critics of the referendum say it is a waste of money and that there are more urgent amendments to the constitution that should be considered.

Since the Irish constitution was enacted in 1937, there have been 36 attempts to amend it, 30 of them were successful. Referendums are the only way to amend the constitution.
In May 2015 a majorty of 62.1% of voters approved an amendment to allow same sex marriage, while on the same day voters rejected to reduce minimum age for the presidency form 35 to 21 years.
In May 2018, 66.8% of voters voted to repeal earlier amendments that prohibited abortion.

Wikipedia: Amendments to the Constitution of Ireland

Further votes to change the constitution are on the way. The government is planning to propose votes to reduce the voting age to 16 and to allow citizens living abroad to vote in presidential elections. There are also private member proposals on the public ownership of water and the reduction of the divorce waiting period from 4 to 2 years.

For the referendum on October 26, it is widely expected that the amendment to remove the anti-blasphemy article from the constitution will be approved by voters.

(Photo by Diogo Palhais on Unsplash)