Irish citizens forced out of their homeland by economic mismanagement are organising to demand a say in the country’s future, reports Hilary Rock-Gormley
Irish citizens are one of a minority in developed states who are not empowered to exercise the right to vote once they leave their own country. Currently, there are an estimated three million Irish passports held by people who are resident in other countries.
Votes for Irish Citizens Abroad (VICA) is an organisation dedicated to fighting for the right to vote for all Irish citizens, wherever they live. Professor Mary Hickman, of the Centre for Irish Studies at St Mary’s University College in Twickenham, London, chairs the organisation in England.
Born in Liverpool, Professor Hickman is a second generation Irishwoman, who feels strongly that the right to vote should be extended to all Irish citizens wherever they live.
“For a country with such a significant history of emigration it is disturbing that Ireland is part of a very small minority in the European Union, and out of step with much of the rest of the world, in stripping its citizens of their ability to exercise rights linked to their citizenship. All these countries are responding to the realities of globalisation, increased migration and dual citizenships.”
She added: “It appears that Ireland wants emigrants to go on contributing through a variety of ways, including economic, social and cultural remittances, but does not want them to have any say in the future political direction of the country to which many of them want to return.”
In England VICA has the support of the Federation of the Irish in Britain, and from the All Party Parliamentary group on Irish in Britain. The VICA campaign is also active in Australia and the USA, where Irish citizens have fewer rights than in Britain. Irish citizens can vote in British elections. This is not the case in other countries, where immigrants are obliged to take out citizenship before they are allowed to vote in government elections.
In September 2013 the Irish Constitutional Convention recommended to the Dáil that Irish citizens currently living outside the Republic be allowed to vote in elections for the Irish presidency.
Ironically, the current proposal to allow voting in Presidential elections only will require a constitutional change. It is assumed currently that once people have a vote, they will have it in all elections – the current disenfranchisement is only legislative. To split the right so that votes for the Presidency (and possibly, now, the Seanad) only, will require an amendment to the Irish constitution. VICA has requested that the convention reconsider the whole issue, and recommend that enfranchisement be extended to all elections.
