Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will not rehash what happened yesterday, but I will add my voice to that of Senator Terry Leyden on the removal from the Statute Book of the defence of reasonable chastisement of children. I hope the motivation that prompted the Minister and some Senators to support this measure heralds a sea change in their thinking with regard to the rights of children. I am referring specifically to the unborn. It would be fantastic if they were to reflect carefully on their position which I hope is absolutely genuine. Recently, we all received a video clip showing a young baby of 18 weeks in the womb responding positively to music. It is unimaginable and horrendous to think babies of that age have their arms and legs sundered or their skulls squashed as the preferred method of abortion, particularly in the United States, as shown in the video from Planned Parenthood. Let us not forget that there is a branch of Planned Parenthood here, of which the Minister and some of his senior officials are strong proponents. I really hope people will reflect on the issue. Otherwise the measure mentioned will smack of gross hypocrisy and a lack of genuine interest in children. I hope people will reflect on their position in order that there will be a genuine movement in the interests of children. On Monday and Tuesday, the Acting Leader, Senator Paul Coghlan, and I were in Britain for a meeting of the sovereign matters committee of the British Irish Parliamentary Assembly. Subsequent to that, I attended the debate in the House of Commons when the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland presented the report on paramilitarism in Northern Ireland. I know many Senators spoke about this yesterday but, unfortunately, I was not in a position to be here yesterday. As we are on the eve of marking 1916 when we commemorate those great leaders of that era who sacrificed their own lives so that we might enjoy freedom and be able to live in an independent State which we all value, it is imperative that those who pretend to stand for those great leaders’ particular values would reflect carefully as well. It is unimaginable that a movement, based on the idealism of those people who were very much into self-sacrifice, would now see its members, who pretend to succeed those very people-----