And Irish Justice & Equality Minister Apologises for Past Suffering

" … 25 years ago this week, an important step was taken which changed the lives of many people in Ireland. The enactment of the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1993 sought to repeal Victorian-era laws which criminalised members of our society, forcing them to conduct their personal and private lives in secret. Homosexual men in Ireland were ostracized, and criminalised, simply because of their sexual orientation.

These laws caused immeasurable harm. Nothing that can be said here today can undo the unjust suffering and discrimination that the homosexual community experienced in the years prior to decriminalisation.

As a Government, we must acknowledge those wrongs, and seek to improve lives for all members of our society so that they can live freely and without fear of discrimination.

I am delighted to support the motion in this House today, which at its heart, offers an apology to all those affected by the criminalisation of consensual same-sex acts in Ireland prior to 1993. This motion is reflective of the Government’s commitment to ensuring that Ireland is a society for all people, an equal society, and a fair society.

In 1977, a Senator in this House, Senator David Norris, took a significant High Court challenge against the laws which criminalised homosexuality in Ireland. This was a brave, first step towards the decriminalisation of homosexual relationships, and is one which is widely recognised as the critical step that led to the 1993 Act. That case lead to the judgment of the European Court on Human Rights which found that the laws against homosexuality in Ireland were in direct contravention of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The impact and significance of that challenge cannot be underestimated...


... This motion recognises the great harm caused to many people by the criminalisation of these relationships in Ireland. These laws were clearly discriminatory in nature, and were also a direct infringement on the personal and private lives of those who they affected. Immeasurable hurt and immeasurable harm was caused to many people in our society, to their families, and to their friends.

Decriminalisation was a huge step in Ireland’s ability to progress towards equality for the LGBTI community within Ireland.

Today Ireland is celebrated around the world for the value which its citizens place on equality, following the same sex marriage referendum, and in recognition of the diversity in our current Cabinet.  It is doubtless incomprehensible to many, especially to many young people in Ireland today, that there are members of our society who still feels the effects of such discrimination in their daily lives and yet, that is the case. There are people who still feel the isolation, the hurt and the stigma created by those laws, which denied the LGBTI community the ability to live openly or without fear, which denied them the ability to engage actively in civil and public life, and which suggested that society did not value or even tolerate them, simply because of their sexual orientation.

As Minister for Justice and Equality, I extend a sincere apology to all of those people, to their family, and to their friends. To any person who felt the hurt and isolation created by those laws, and particularly to those who those who were criminally convicted by the existence of such laws.

Successive Governments have slowly but steadily worked to make Ireland a more equal and inclusive society since decriminalisation in 1993. Some of that progress is captured in this motion. Many legislative measures have been introduced which have sought to improve the lives of all members of society, so that they may marry regardless of sexual orientation, so that they may be recognised by their chosen gender, so that they may enjoy equal rights to family relationships, and to address discrimination in all forms.

Such progress can only be welcomed. However, that does not mean that there is not more work that must be done. The motion before you today also reflects our desire to continue to ensure that the laws in this country fully recognises sexual and gender minorities, and that people in our society are free to fully express their identities without fear, and without discrimination.  My hardworking colleague, Minister of State Stanton, is absolutely committed to advancing equality measures and, indeed, he has begun work on an LGBTI Strategy.

The past cannot be undone. It is the responsibility of this Government and those that follow in our footsteps that we continue to progress, that we continue to promote equality for all, and that our policies and our actions strive to ensure that human rights are protected. It is of the highest importance, that our citizens can live in freedom and participate fully in our society, and that those who continue to face discrimination and violence are protected... "

Irish Minister for Justice and Equality, Mr. Charlie Flanagan T.D., June 19, 2018.

     Click here to read entire statement

 

Irish PM Marks 25th Anniversary of Decriminalisation of Homosexuality

"  Ceann Comhairle, I am grateful that we all have this opportunity to mark the 25th anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Ireland.

It can be hard to change laws. It can be even harder to change hearts and minds. To change what is considered normal. To change a culture.

Twenty-five years ago President Mary Robinson signed into law an historic act that brought an end to decades of cruelty and injustice.

The Fianna Fáil/Labour coalition at the time deserves credit for its courage in driving this change, and a special mention should be made of the Minister for Justice, Maire Geoghegan-Quinn who led on this issue.

I would also like to acknowledge the work of Senator Ged Nash in bringing forward tonight’s motion.
Several pieces of legislation were repealed in 1993. Many were historical and stretched back to the 19th century and even before the famine.

There was some legislation from 1842, some from 1847, with the main legislation from 1861 and 1885.

They were the dogmas of a different time and they dictated how we treated and mistreated our fellow citizens, our brothers and sisters.

It is oppressive to live in a constant state of humiliation, a constant state of fear. It is also deeply traumatic to feel that you are rejected by your own country.

As the work of Diarmaid Ferriter has shown, between 1940 and 1978 an average of 13 men a year were jailed for homosexual offences. Between 1962 and 1972, there were 455 convictions.

I was born in 1979 and in the three years before that there were 44 prosecutions in this country. It’s not that long ago.

Homosexuality was seen as a perversion, and trials were sometimes a cruel form of entertainment. Others saw it as a mental illness including the medical profession at the time.

For every one conviction there were a hundred other people who lived under the stigma of prosecution, who feared having their sexuality made public, and their lives destroyed.

Last summer, I was in San Francisco and I visited the memorial in City Hall in honour of Harvey Milk.

Milk was the first openly gay man to be elected to office, and he was assassinated forty years ago by those who were offended by everything he stood for. His picture now hangs in the Taoiseach’s office.
Milk believed that hope is never silent.

In this country we were too silent on too many issues for far too long. It was the voices of the brave few who gave us all hope and who changed things for everyone.

I was just a child when Declan Flynn was murdered in Fairview Park, his only crime that he was gay.
He was brutally attacked by five young men, one a teenager, who shouted ‘Hide behind a tree. We are going to bash a queer’.

He died from asphyxia after been given an horrific beating.

When the Oireachtas makes something a crime, some people believe they have a license to punish those they believe are committing it.

These were young men who had grown up in a society which hated and feared homosexuality. They took the law into their own hands. And all too often, people allowed the law to do its bashing for them.
A year after Declan Flynn’s death there were huge protests in Dublin, organised by a coalition of groups who were horrified at the sentence given to his attackers, and a movement was mobilised in Ireland.

The same year we had the first Pride parade in Dublin. People would no longer remain silent. Pride is now a festival of diversity and inclusion. We shouldn’t forget, it did not start out that way.

The 22nd of May 2015 - a date I will never forget - it was the day of the marriage Referendum - the bench where Declan Flynn was killed, at Fairview Park, was covered with flowers and notes.

We think of him today on this anniversary, and of the new Ireland that we live in.

We also remember those who paved the way for this change. We had many tireless campaigners over the decades, such as the people involved with the Irish Gay Rights Movement.

We had the inspiring example of Senator David Norris, who brought his case for decriminalisation all the way to Supreme Court thirty-five years ago, who never let defeat dampen his determination or good humour.

We owe a debt to Europe. In 1988 the European Court of Human Rights decided in favour of David Norris in a landmark case. It created the impetus and provided the momentum for us to change our laws.

Some years later, Senator Norris wrote a letter to the Irish Times and said that for the first time in his life he felt that he was a full and equal citizen in his own country.

So much has changed since then. Three years ago we helped to transform how this country is seen around the world when we voted for marriage equality. The first country in the world to do so by popular vote.

Last year I had the privilege of being elected Taoiseach, something that would have been unimaginable when I was born, and would have seemed impossible even a few short years ago.

There are many people who helped change minds and change laws and their contribution should be remembered. People who fought for me before I did so myself.

I think today of the people who are no longer with us. Champions like Dr. Ann Louise Gilligan, someone whose courage helped change the laws in this country.

We have a long history of homosexuality in this country, and it is something we should be aware of. Aristotle wrote that the Celts openly approved of same-sex relationships, and there are many references to same-sex relationships in Irish mythology. The Brehon Laws mentioned homosexuality.

It’s no secret that a number of patriots who were involved in the founding of the state - men and women - were homosexual. While the state's laws affected gay men in a legal sense, they had a chilling effect on lesbians as well.

However, today the people I want to pay a special tribute to are the unknown heroes, the thousands of people whose names we do not know, who were criminalised by our forbears.

Men and women of all ages who tried to live and love and be themselves in a society where their identity was feared and despised, and who were aliens in their own country for their entire lives.

We cannot erase the wrong that was done to them.

What we can say is that we have learned as a society from their suffering.

Their stories have helped change us for the better; they have made us more tolerant, more understanding and more human.

This evening we mark the anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Ireland and the progress made since.

We have come a long way, we remember those who suffered and we acknowledge that we still have more to do. There is always more to do, whether it’s promoting LGBT equality around the world, combating bullying or working to improve sexual health.

Harvey Milk reminded us of the challenge we face in society to ‘break down myths, and destroy the lies and distortions.’ He understood why it needed to be done. We do it for ourselves, we do it for others, and, most of all, we do it for the young. "

Statement of An Taoiseach - Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar - 25th Anniversary of Decriminalisation of Homosexuality. Tuesday 19 June 2018.

     Click here to see the original 

 

Trinidad and Tobago High Court Decriminalises Same-Sex Relations

" 1.  By this action, the court has been asked to determine whether the State has the constitutional authority to criminalise sexual relations between consenting adults. Sexual relations between persons of the same sex constitute a criminal offence by virtue of sections 13 and 16 of the Sexual Offences Act Chapter 11:28 ("the Act").

2.  The claimant petitioned the court, pursuant to section 14 of the Constitution, to strike down sections 13 and 16 of the Act and, by so doing, decriminalise consensual sexual relations between persons of the same sex...

3.  This court considered the numerous authorities submitted by the parties.. The court considered the history of the impugned sections and the applicable principles and tests to be applied to constitutional challenges in this jurisdiction together with persuasive authorities in other jurisdictions.

4.  After careful consideration this court came to the following conclusions: ...


4.3.  Sections 13 and 16 of the Act violate the claimant’s fundamental rights, especially his right to respect for his private and family life;

4.4.  Sections 13 and 16 of the Act have been proven not to be reasonably justifiable in a society that has a proper respect for the rights and freedoms of the individual...

14.  This is not a case about religious and moral beliefs but is one about the inalienable rights of a citizen under the Republican Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago; any citizen; all citizens. As discussed below, this is a case about the dignity of the person and not about the will of the majority or any religious debate. History has proven that the two do not always coincide. To my mind, religious debates are best left to be discussed and resolved in other quarters with persons who subscribe to those particular ideals and for the followers of those ideals to be convinced as to the religiousness, sanctity or morality of those ideals. In this case, the court has had to consider the dignity of the claimant and citizens like him in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in the context of whether his, and by extension, their rights under the Constitution are being validly impinged...

168.  Having regard to the evidence and submissions before this court on all sides, there is no cogent evidence that the legislative objective is sufficiently important to justify limiting the claimant’s rights... do not counterbalance the claimant’s limit of his fundamental right of which he has given evidence. Instead, the court accepts the claimant’s position that the law as it stands is not sufficiently important to justify limiting his fundamental rights and that he has proven it on a balance of probabilities...

173.  At this point, the court feels compelled to state in conclusion that it is unfortunate when society in any way values a person or gives a person their identity based on their race, colour, gender, age or sexual orientation. That is not their identity. That is not their soul. That is not the sum total of their value to society or their value to themselves. The experiences of apartheid South Africa and the USA during and after slavery, even into the mid and late 20th century, have shown the depths that human dignity has been plunged as a result of presupposed and predetermined prejudices based on factors that do not accept or recognize humanity. Racial segregation, apartheid, the Holocaust - these are all painful memories of this type of prejudice. To now deny a perceived minority their right to humanity and human dignity would be to continue this type of thinking, this type of perceived superiority based on the genuinely held beliefs of some.

174.  This conclusion is not an assessment or denial of the religious beliefs of anyone. This court is not qualified to do so. However, this conclusion is a recognition that the beliefs of some, by definition, is not the belief of all and, in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, all are protected, and are entitled to be protected, under the Constitution. As a result, this court must and will uphold the Constitution to recognize the dignity of even one citizen whose rights and freedoms have been invalidly taken away...

176.  Consequently, the court will grant the following relief:

176.1.  The court declares that sections13 and16 of the Act are unconstitutional, illegal, null, void, invalid and are of no effect to the extent that these laws criminalise any acts constituting consensual sexual conduct between adults... "

The Honourable Mr. Justice Devindra Rampersad, The High Court of Justice, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, April 12, 2018.
 
     Click here to read the entire decision

 

Colorado Gov Regrets SupCt Decision

" It’s against Colorado law to deny goods and services to any individual because of sexual orientation. Nothing in the narrow opinion released today by the United States Supreme Court changes that, or prevents the state from protecting LGBTQ persons from discrimination.

While we are disappointed with the decision, we take seriously the Court’s admonition that the state must apply its laws and regulations in a manner that is neutral toward religion. We have no doubt that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission will meet that standard as they listen, respectfully, to all sides of the matters that come before it and issue decisions that uphold the protections afforded under Colorado law. "

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, June 4, 2018.

    Click here for original statement