Tag Archives: Ireland

Ireland To Establish Development Centre In Calabar

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The Republic of Ireland has indicated its preparedness to partner Nigeria, using Cross River State as the pilot state, to ensure it attains socio-economic and infrastructural development.

Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Sean Hoy, disclosed this while on a courtesy call to the Governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade.

The Irish government believes this will help address the problem of youth restiveness in the Niger Delta region.

The Ambassador said that  his team are in Calabar to draw a framework of development that involves the state and Federal Government, in a bid to find the way forward in their respective developmental strives, as well as help curb restiveness in the Niger Delta region.

Mr Hoy who also announced the establishment of a development centre in Calabar as part of the initiative, said he had visited Bayelsa and Rivers States before choosing Calabar as the choice location.

Governor Ayade revealed that it is critical to address the restiveness that has characterised the Niger Delta region, saying no development can take place where crisis and tension exist.

He maintained that the crisis and challenges of Niger Delta are unpardonable and no matter how much one has given to a man, liberty is better than slavery.

Credit: ChannelTv

Same-Sex Marriage Is Now Legal In Ireland

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Same-sex marriage is now legal in the Republic of Ireland, after legislation passed by referendum in May came into effect Monday.

The Irish state became the first in the world to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote when the Marriage Act 2015 was passed, reports the BBC.

Same-sex couples who have been wed abroad will now be legally recognized by the state, while gay and lesbian couples who want to marry will be able to do so. People already in civil partnerships can now choose to wed as well. The law will not affect the legal status of existing civil partners who do not want to get married.

More than 62% voted in favor of same-sex marriage during the May 23 referendum.

Ireland Votes “Yes” To Legalize ‘Same-Sex Marriage’

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Ireland has voted to legalise same-sex marriage in a historic referendum that saw more than 62% of voters support the campaign to amend the country’s constitution.

Some 1.2 million people backed the “yes” campaign in the nationwide poll, which saw a voter turnout of more than 60%.

The referendum marks the first time a country has voted to approve same-sex marriage in a popular vote.

Only one of Ireland’s 42 constituencies voted “no”. The strongest support for the “yes” campaign was in Dublin, where support was over 70% in most districts.

Voters were asked whether they wanted to amend Article 41 of the 1937 Constitution by adding a new clause to a section titled The Family.

It asked them to support or reject a change to the 78-year-old document to make it read: “Marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex.”

The vote has not yet made same-sex marriage legal – new laws will now be put to the Irish parliament before the summer. It is expected that the first same-sex marriage ceremonies will take place before the end of the year.

Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s health minister and the country’s first openly gay cabinet member, said: “Something has been awakened in the Irish people. “It was not just a referendum, it was more like a social revolution.”

Thousands of people packed into the upper courtyard at Dublin Castle to await the result and cheered as it was announced.

Same-sex marriage was legalised in England and Wales by the UK Parliament in July 2013 and in Scotland by the Scottish Parliament in February 2014.

The move puts renewed pressure on the devolved Northern Ireland government to follow suit after the executive said it has no intention of introducing legislation.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny paid tribute to the 60,000 young people who registered to vote in recent weeks and thousands of emigrants who came home from as far afield as Canada, the US and Australia to cast their ballots. “It’s a piece of history,” he said.

One of Ireland’s most senior Catholic clerics, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin, said the church had to be aware that Ireland had changed.

He told RTE: “It’s a social revolution that’s been going on… I think really the Church needs to do a reality check.”

Credit: SKY NEWS