Blasphemy law in the Republic of Ireland

In Ireland, "publication or utterance of blasphemous matter", defamatory of any religion, was a criminal offence until 17 January 2020. It was a requirement of the 1937 Constitution until removed after a 2018 referendum. The common law offence of blasphemous libel, applicable only to Christianity and last prosecuted in 1855,[1][a] was believed to fulfil the constitutional requirement until a 1999 ruling that it was incompatible with the constitution's guarantee of religious equality.[4] The Defamation Act 2009 included a provision intended to fill the lacuna while being "virtually impossible" to enforce,[5] and no prosecution was made under it.[6] The 2009 statute increased controversy, with proponents of freedom of speech and freedom of religion arguing for amending the constitution.[7] After the 2018 constitutional amendment, a separate bill to repeal the 2009 provision and residual references to blasphemy was enacted in 2019 by the Oireachtas (parliament) and came into force in 2020. The Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989, which includes religion among the characteristics protected from incitement to hatred, remains in force.[8]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference iesc5s24 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ O'Higgins 1960, p.164
  3. ^ O'Higgins 1960, p.151–152
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference iesc5s35 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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  8. ^ "Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989". electronic Irish Statute Book (eISB). Retrieved 30 January 2020.; Ó Ríordáin, Aodhán (2 October 2014). "Sixth Report of the Constitutional Convention – Blasphemy: Statements". Dáil Éireann (31st Dáil) debates. Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 30 January 2020. there is already relevant legislative provision in the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act; "Review of the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989: Public Consultation" (PDF). Department of Justice. October 2019. p. 3. Retrieved 30 January 2020. The 1989 Act prohibits certain forms of threatening, abusive or insulting conduct that are intended or likely to stir up hatred against a group of persons on account of certain characteristics. These characteristics are race, colour, nationality, religion, ethnic or national origins, membership of the travelling community and sexual orientation.


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