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Article: Irish vote for divorce ends era of church's social dominance.
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- December 8, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The Irish voted Nov. 24 to remove the ban on divorce enshrined in their constitution since 1927. The referendum followed a bitter campaign that pitted the main political parties against the Catholic church and divided the overwhelmingly Catholic country in which 2.6 million were eligible to vote. The vote was so close, 50.3 to 49.7, that a recount is probable and a court challenge possible, but observers say the decision is likely to stand.
The significant upheaval, however, was not the advent of legal divorce - Ireland was the only country in Europe to forbid divorce, so the legal writing was probably on the wall - but the abrupt end to an era of domination of Irish ...