Order of Business - 6th March 2007

Order of Business – 6th March 2007
Mr. Norris: I join with colleagues in expressing
my revulsion at the way in which the story of the
young man who tragically met his death in Lucan
was treated in the media. It was stated authoritatively
that he was known to the police, which he
was not, and that he was a convicted criminal,
which he was not either. His family, so traumatised
by this, has no recourse in action. This
afternoon we will deal with the Defamation Bill.
No clause in the Bill covers libelling of the dead,
despite the recommendation of the Law Reform
Commission that this be included, thus allowing
close relatives of the deceased to take action with
a limit of a period of years. I propose to table
an amendment at the appropriate time to ensure
this happens.
This is not the first time this has happened. The
Leader raised a similar case in tones of horror
when a young man, a relative of a sensational
murderer, was photographed cycling through the
front square of Trinity College. His name and
degree course were printed. He had done nothing
wrong and it was not his fault that his father had
a psychopathic past.
Another case is that of Mr. Liam Lawlor.
Newspapers claimed he was killed in the com771
Order of 6 March 2007. Business 772
[Mr. Norris.]
pany of a prostitute. The young woman was fortunate
to survive and I hope she mulcts all the
newspapers in damages.
We are approaching International Women’s
Day and are also in the middle of Lent. I listened
to “Liveline” at lunch and, while it is meretricious
to raise matters from that show all the time, he
sometimes considers important matters. This Tro´ -
caire advertisement was one of the best I have
heard. It concerned the manner in which women
are discriminated against and listed various categories
of discrimination which all had one thing in
common, namely, they were perpetrated on
women. Someone objected to this and, for
reasons of political correctness, the advertisement
has been withdrawn.
Ms O’Rourke: By who?
Mr. Norris: The Broadcasting Commission of
Ireland, BCI.
Ms O’Rourke: Why?
Mr. Norris: It stated it was too political. This is
absurd. We can publish any quantity of lies about
dead Irish citizens but we cannot have a reasonable
advertisement during Lent from a responsible
organisation like Tro´ caire because it is politically
incorrect.
An Cathaoirleach: I remind Senator Norris that
the BCI is independent in its functions.
Mr. Norris: It should be subject to standards of
decency and reason. I do not suggest that the
Seanad can crack the whip and send the commission
to jail but we can question its decisions.
I am merely raising a question.
An Cathaoirleach: I am only making a point.
Mr. Norris: I appreciate that and would not like
to overstep the mark. This is the fifth anniversary
of a remarkable and immensely moving letter,
which we read with great interest, from a woman
who had been told that she was carrying a 16
week old foetus with a severe chromosomal
abnormality incompatible with life. The trauma
of that news was exacerbated by the fact that she
was forced to carry it to term by the State. She
had two other small children and was expected to
carry this trauma and all the difficulties this
entailed for the other siblings. She did not advocate
what she called “social abortion” but stated:
I am angry that men I do not know and who
don’t know me ... have decided that my body
is their demesne; that they have the right to
decide how my family will cope with this very
real tragedy; that, regardless of the emotional
and physical distress for us, I must do what they
want; that their bigoted will rules my body.
She challenged this Oireachtas that it has a
responsibility to bite the bullet and legislate in
this limited area in light of a series of court
judgments. The Seanad, as part of the Oireachtas,
is constantly castigated for not living up to its
responsibilities. The same occurred with the
domestic partnership Bill recently. There was a
charade whereby it was to be amended in six
months, even though we are well aware the
Government will be gone by then. As far as I am
concerned, it cannot be gone soon enough. Let
the general election roll on and I hope, for the
sake of the country, that we at last get a Government
that will not suffer from the indecision and
dithering on these important issues displayed by
the present Government.
Ms Feeney: What is the Senator talking about?
Mr. Dardis: Speech.
An Cathaoirleach: I have been most generous
to the Senator and I would appreciate it if he
could be brief.
Mr. B. Hayes: For the first time we will agree
to give the Senator another five minutes.
An Cathaoirleach: No.
Mr. Norris: Finally, there is a group of Kurdish
people demonstrating outside the gates of the
Oireachtas. They maintain, apparently on good
evidence, that the Kurdish resistance leader,
Abdullah Ocalan, who has been in prison for
some years, is being systematically poisoned.
There appears to be medical evidence of it. This
matter should be examined by the human rights
sub-committee of the Oireachtas Joint Committee
on Foreign Affairs.