In October of this year, a randomly selected, representative sample of 99 Irish citizens, with chairperson Justice Mary Laffoy, will come together as a government-mandated Citizens’ Assembly. For one weekend every month over the following 12 months they will deliberate on, among other things, the constitutional ban on abortion embodied in the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution of Ireland.
It is emphatically not a raw opinion poll, and not a referendum.
The delivery of Irish Taoiseach (prime minister) Enda Kenny’s promise to hold a Citizens’ Assembly on the Eighth Amendment has, as one would expect, been both applauded and condemned. Those that applaud the move include groups that believe the issue should be urgently reviewed and that constituting a Citizens’ Assembly (CA) to do so removes such an important and contentious issue from the sphere of partisan politicking and hands the power to make a recommendation to the people – a small but representative sample of the people. The aim is for this sample to make an informed, judicious recommendation that reflects what people would think after being given balanced information and being subject to debate and discussion with other citizens. It is emphatically not a raw opinion poll, and not a referendum where, as shown by Brexit, people often vote not on the matter at hand, but vote to vent frustration, anger or disappointment with politicians or the political class, and often with a very limited grasp of the import of their decision.
