Michelle Mulherin (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I want to speak to a substantive issue as it is being discussed by the Government, that is the issue of extending the franchise outside the Republic.

As Deputy Dowds said, unless we can give people who are resident here, but who go abroad to work or on holidays, the right to vote, then why are we talking about giving people that right who are outside this jurisdiction? Surely that is the first thing we should try to address, as well as the quesstion of scrutiny. This is a big effort, yet we still have not achieved it.

People who may be away on polling day want to vote but cannot do so. Where are we going in this regard? We must be grounded in reality and if we could achieve that, maybe we could talk about the pros and cons of how and where we can extend the franchise to people who have connections with this State.

In this era, we could be accused of taking democracy for granted. Senator Brennan referred to voter apathy and low turnout. When one drills down and examines the anomalies in the electoral register, however, one can see the numbers going out to vote. While it may be different for general or local elections, the figures are still not where one would like to see them.

People talk about the confusion surrounding referendums, including the children's rights referendum, and we must listen to what they are saying. This country had been plagued by scandals affecting the care of children and many cases were cited where the law was too restrictive. It was said that we needed a referendum to change the law and firm it up to ensure that children are protected. The turnout at public meetings on that referendum was low, however, so the vote did not surprise me at all. In fact, that vote took place on a Saturday to accommodate young people. I visited as many polling stations as I could that day just to touch base, but many presiding officers remarked on the low turnout of young people. I think therefore that something more fundamental is wrong.

Protests and civil disobedience that cross the line into criminal behaviour are a serious attack on law and order, which is the very basis of our democracy. We will not have these freedoms, including the right to walk down the street, unless we all observe the law. Whether or not we like the law, it has to be obeyed. There are democratic ways to change laws which entail a respect for differences.

We have seen the shocking situation of what happened to the Tánaiste in Jobstown. Could the people who detained her for several hours accept that she has as deeply held a conviction about the decision she was making, as they have? One does not achieve anything in a democratic fashion by intimidation. We should all take stock of our democracy, but are we taking it for granted? We should look at countries where democracy is not operating and where people do not have civil liberties. There can be chaos where a few people take control for their own betterment, and in many cases the west is supporting them. We have an awful lot going for us here, but if we lose sight of that we will be in a terrible quandary.

As regards our democratic electoral system, people may ask: "Why can't you just do this?" We are not an autocracy, but democracy is laborious and most of the time it is not glamorous. It is about conversation, whether at public meetings or with those coming into a constituency office. We listen to things with which we may not agree, but we are all citizens and it is about discussing matters.

We are examining the situation to make the electoral system more interesting to young people, but is it interesting for them? We need to look at what it means to be an Irish citizen. Citizenship ceremonies were introduced under the former Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Alan Shatter. They are a good idea because citizenship in a republic has value, rights and responsibilities. It seems, however, that we cannot talk about responsibilities in this country because we feel we have been so oppressed as a nation that it now has to be about people's rights, but there is a balance to be struck here.

We need to begin a conversation with bright, young people who have availed of significant educational opportunities and achieved many of the freedoms our forefathers sought for the nation. However, many of the citizenship programmes I have seen in schools seem to be only for those who choose to do them. I believe the Minister's job, whether we have an electoral commission or not and despite the pros or cons for it, is to ensure a more systematic approach to this issue. People must be helped to understand the power of a vote. They must understand their power, that one man or one woman equates to one vote, no matter who or what the person is. However, people feel so disenfranchised that they believe their vote is not worth anything. It is worth exactly the same as my vote or the President's vote. We need to bring that civic pride in the country back to the people. We have a democracy which is not perfect, but we strive towards excellence. We need to have these conversations, which go to the heart as opposed to the appearance of democracy and how we do things. Everybody needs to vote, no matter what. This does not mean they know the perfect vote to make or the perfect person to vote for, but that they try their best, just as politicians try their best.

We talk about electoral reform, democratic revolution and so on, but sometimes people forget that the people who have been elected pretty much represent the people who elected them and that there are all sorts of politicians and all sorts of people. Therefore, to suggest there can be a general consensus on how politicians in our democracy should operate is not entirely honest. It has been very attractive in the period we have experienced in recent times, when we have been on an unprecedented economic roller coaster and have seen a flux in terms of politics, to think that we can decide instantly that we can bang on the table and have things the way we want them. That seems to be what many protests have been about. I fully accept people's right to protest, but we need to take stock of what is being sacrificed.

Whatever way we approach these issues, we need to get to the heart of the participation of citizens in the democratic process.