Ivana Bacik

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK
 Labour Party Seanad leader and Spokesperson on Justice
Tuesday 15th November 2011

BACIK HOSTS OIREACHTAS SEMINAR ON ST. PATRICK’S INSTITUTION AND NEED FOR REFORM

Professor Harry Kennedy and Emily Logan, the Children’s Ombudsman, will be speaking today in Leinster House at a seminar being hosted by Senator Ivana Bacik and facilitated by the Irish Penal Reform Trust.

The seminar will be on the subject of St. Patrick’s Institution. The focus will be upon the continued detention of children in the Institution, and the need to ensure adequate facilities both for the boys over 18 detained there; and for the children who should no longer be detained there but who remain pending their transfer to more suitable facilities.

In opening the seminar, Senator Bacik will say,
 
 

“The Programme for Government contains a commitment to end the practice of sending children to St. Patrick’s Institution. However, on a recent visit to St. Patrick’s Institution with other members of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, we were told that over 30 children continue to be detained there.  I urge the Government to act immediately to end the detention of children. Pending their move to different facilities, it is essential that the children have access to adequate accommodation, educational and other support facilities.”

“I look forward to hearing from Professor Harry Kennedy, who with his colleagues from the Central Mental Hospital has initiated ground-breaking work in recent months within St. Patrick’s and who will outline the emerging evidence from his team’s assessment of the boys detained there. I also very much look forward to hearing from Emily Logan, the Ombudsman for Children, who has undertaken a number of significant projects in recent years to highlight the experiences of the children who continue to be detained in St. Patrick’s.”

ENDS

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK 

Labour Party Seanad leader and Spokesperson on Justice
Thursday 10th November 2011

BILL TO LEGALISE HUMANIST MARRIAGES PASSES SECOND STAGE WITHOUT A VOTE

The Civil Registration (Amendment) Bill 2011introduced during Labour private members’ time today Thursday in the Seanad by Senator Ivana Bacik was passed through second stage with unanimous support and without a vote.

The purpose of the bill is legalise Humanist marriage ceremonies by amending the Civil Registration Act 2004.

Welcoming the passage of the bill, Senator Bacik said,
 
 
“I am delighted that this bill received cross-party support and that it has now passed second stage in the Seanad. This bill will mark a step towards a more inclusive and pluralist society, and it will make a real difference to couples who wish to celebrate their marriage with a Humanist ceremony. CSO figures predict that next year non-religious civil wedding ceremonies will for the first time outnumber religious ceremonies – Irish society is changing and our law on marriage needs to reflect that.”

“The Presidential Inauguration ceremony tomorrow will for the first time incorporate a Humanist element alongside the religious elements. This indicates the growing recognition of Humanism as a value-system in Ireland. Humanists have become a voice for the non-religious who are, in the most recent CSO figures, the largest group in Ireland after Roman Catholics. This Bill represents a way for us to show that we are inclusive of those increasing numbers in our society who do not share the faith of the majority, and that we respect their values and belief-systems just as we respect those of the many persons who are members of established religious churches.”

“I look forward to continuing debate on the bill when it comes before us in the Seanad at Committee stage.”

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK 
 

Labour Party Seanad leader and Spokesperson on Justice
Thursday 10th November 2011

BACIK WELCOMES INTRODUCTION OF BILL TO LEGALISE HUMANIST MARRIAGES

Senator Ivana Bacik will introduce the Civil Registration (Amendment) Bill 2011during Labour private members’ time today Thursday in the Seanad at 11.45am. The purpose of the bill is legalise Humanist marriage ceremonies by amending the Civil Registration Act 2004.

Welcoming the introduction of the bill, Senator Bacik said,
 
 
“This bill will mark a step towards a more inclusive and pluralist society, and it will make a real difference to couples who wish to celebrate their marriage with a Humanist ceremony. CSO figures predict that next year non-religious civil wedding ceremonies will for the first time outnumber religious ceremonies – Irish society is changing and our law on marriage needs to reflect that.”

“The Presidential Inauguration ceremony tomorrow will for the first time incorporate a Humanist element alongside the religious elements. This indicates the growing recognition of Humanism as a value-system in Ireland. Humanists have become a voice for the non-religious who are, in the most recent CSO figures, the largest group in Ireland after Roman Catholics. This Bill represents a way for us to show that we are inclusive of those increasing numbers in our society who do not share the faith of the majority, and that we respect their values and belief-systems just as we respect those of the many persons who are members of established religious churches.”

ENDS

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK

 Labour Party Seanad leaderand Spokesperson on Justice
Thursday 10th November 2011

BACIK WELCOMES INTRODUCTION OF BILL TO LEGALISE HUMANIST MARRIAGES

Senator Ivana Bacik will introducethe Civil Registration (Amendment) Bill 2011during Labour private members’time today Thursday in the Seanad at 11.45am. The purpose of the bill islegalise Humanist marriage ceremonies by amending the Civil RegistrationAct 2004.

Welcoming the introduction of thebill, Senator Bacik said,
 
 
“This bill will mark a step towardsa more inclusive and pluralist society, and it will make a real differenceto couples who wish to celebrate their marriage with a Humanist ceremony.CSO figures predict that next year non-religious civil wedding ceremonieswill for the first time outnumber religious ceremonies – Irish societyis changing and our law on marriage needs to reflect that.”

“The Presidential Inaugurationceremony tomorrow will for the first time incorporate a Humanist elementalongside the religious elements. This indicates the growing recognitionof Humanism as a value-system in Ireland. Humanists have become a voicefor the non-religious who are, in the most recent CSO figures, the largestgroup in Ireland after Roman Catholics. This Bill represents a way forus to show that we are inclusive of those increasing numbers in our societywho do not share the faith of the majority, and that we respect their valuesand belief-systems just as we respect those of the many persons who aremembers of established religious churches.”

ENDS

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK
 

 Labour Party Seanad leader and Spokespersonon Justice
Wednesday 9th November 2011

BACIK WELCOMES FIRST MEETING OF JUSTICE COMMITTEE SUB-GROUP ON PENAL REFORM

Senator Ivana Bacik today welcomed the factthat the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice had convened the first meetingof its Sub-Committee on Penal Reform.

Senator Bacik said,
 
“I am delighted that this sub-committeeon Penal Reform has been established, at my initiative, to investigatenon-custodial alternatives to imprisonment, to include so-called ‘backdoor’ strategies that involve some form of structured early release programmes.I am also delighted to have been appointed as Rapporteur to this sub-committee.

”The sub-committee at its meeting todayagreed to take submissions from relevant groups and to investigate differentmodels for early release strategies, to include release under communitysupervision; enhanced remission; and ‘earned’ temporary release. Thesub-committee work programme has been strongly influenced by the findingsof the recent Thornton Hall Review Group Report, and we hope to build onthose findings and make positive recommendations to government when wehave concluded our deliberations.”

ENDS

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK

 Labour Party Seanad leader and Spokesperson on Justice
Wednesday 9th November 2011

CIVIL REGISTRATION (AMENDMENT) BILL TO ENABLE LEGAL HUMANIST MARRIAGE CEREMONIES

During Labour private members’ time tomorrow Thursday in the Seanad, SenatorIvana Bacik will introduce the Civil Registration (Amendment) Bill 2011.The purpose of this bill is to amend three sections of the Civil RegistrationAct 2004, to extend the categories of bodies whose members may be licensedto conduct legal civil marriage ceremonies.

Explaining the purpose of the bill, Senator Bacik said,
 
“Under the 2004 Act, only HSE Registrars and members of ‘religious bodies’may legally celebrate civil marriages. The definition currently containedin the 2004 Act of a body which may apply to have its members licensedto celebrate legal civil marriages excludes members of the Humanist Associationof Ireland, who in practice routinely conduct wedding and funeral ceremonies.

“This technical amending legislation will confer power on the Ministerto designate other bodies like the Humanist Association as capable of applyingto the Chief Registrar to have their members licensed to perform civilmarriages. It will make a real difference to couples who wish to celebratetheir marriage with a Humanist ceremony. Indeed, hundreds of couples inrecent years have arranged their own non-legally recognised Humanist weddingceremonies, and CSO figures show increasing numbers of couples choosingnon-religious civil wedding ceremonies.”

ENDS

SENATOR BACIK ADDRESSES LAWYERS’ CONCERNS ON ABBEYLARA REFERENDUM

SENATOR BACIK SPEAKS IN SUPPORT OF OIREACHTAS INQUIRIES REFERENDUM AT POLITICAL STUDIES CONFERENCE

 SENATOR BACIK THANKS THE MANY WOMEN WHO ATTENDED THE ‘WOMEN FOR MICHAEL D HIGGINS’ EVENT

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK

Labour Seanad Group Leader
Thursday 8th September, 2011

SENATOR BACIK SPEAKS AT MICHAEL D. HIGGINS PRESS CONFERENCE ON EMIGRANTS

Today at 11.30am in Buswells Hotel, Senator Ivana Bacik chaired a press conference where Michael D. Higgins, the Labour-nominated presidential candidate, spoke about his recent visit to the Irish community in London. In introducing Michael D. Higgins, Senator Bacik said : 

 “Michael D. Higgins has a long track record of campaigning on human rights issues, as well as an outstanding record of practical achievement as Arts Minister in the 1990s. He has promoted a strong view of an inclusive Irish society in which the important contribution of the Irish diaspora is recognised and supported.

“Michael D.’s own family has a long history of emigration – two of his sisters emigrated, and he has an aunt and uncle buried in Australia. In speaking at the London Irish Centre earlier this week, he highlighted the need for the Constitutional Convention to examine the question of votes for emigrants. As someone who emigrated to London after college but was lucky enough to be able to return, I really appreciate the importance of Michael D.’s emphasis on emigration and his advocacy of a more inclusive sense of Irish citizenship.”

ENDS