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Vote on children's rights a 'last resort'

A Constitutional referendum on children's rights should be considered a "last resort" which is unlikely to be necessary to establish a system of child protection, a criminal law expert told an Oireachtas committee yesterday

Dr Tom O'Malley, senior law lecturer at NUI Galway, advised the Joint Committee on the Constitutional Amendment on Children to avoid the temptation to turn the Constitution into a "criminal code" and instead to introduce legislation.

Changes to the Constitution may have unintended consequences which could be difficult to remove or change but legislation can be flexible, he argued.

Legislation which would give "strict" rather than "absolute" liability in cases of children in a younger age group (such as under 13) was suggested by Dr O'Malley

Genevieve Carbery

More story at-http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/1106/1225893546955.html

© 2008 The Irish Times

 
 

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