Campaign To Separate Church & State
Summary of Interventions
1987 - 1999
1987 - Campaign founded at public meeting, Buswells Hotel, Dublin.
1989 - High Court action against the State for allowing the Sisters of Mercy to appropriate £2 million worth of educational equipment. Dick Spicer, supported by the Campaign, won the case.
1991 - Minister for Education (Mary O'Rourke, Fianna Fail) agrees to draft
an Education Act after three years of lobbying by the Campaign.
Irish Education---The Case For Secular Reform by David Alvey is published.
1992 - Participation in nationwide Green Paper debate on education.
Publication of A Question of Basic Rights, CSCS response to the Green Paper.
The Campaign issues A Charter of Rights for Hospital Patients.
Participation with other liberal groups in Frontline, a group dealing with
crisis pregnancy, following the 'X' case in which the Irish State acted
to prevent a 14 year old rape victim from procuring an abortion abroad.
1993 - D. Alvey expounded Campaign position on Late Late Show, RTE Television,
a 40 minute prime time TV debate.
Our pamphlet, Intolerance in the Irish School System is published.
We are invited as full participant in 9-day National Education Convention.
1995 - We are invited to make an oral submission to the Forum for Peace
and Reconciliation following our Time to Face up to 'Rome Rule' document.
High Court action against the State for endowing religion by paying community
school chaplains. We lose and appeal the case to the Supreme Court.
Written submission to Constitution Review Group.
1996 - Represented at Pluralism in Education conference in Belfast.
Creation of the Alliance for Pluralism in Education following a packed public
meeting in the Teachers' Club, organised by the Campaign.
Written and oral submissions to the Parliamentary Committee on the Constitution.
Intense
debate over Education Bill (1996), Bill eventually lapses.
The Campaign and the Conference of Religious of Ireland jointly organise
a public meeting on The Challenge of Partnership in Education.
Tony Monks puts the Campaign case at a Department of Foreign Affairs meeting
on the UN Convention on Civil and Political Rights
1998 - Our Appeal in the "chaplains case" is heard in the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ruling is announced---our Appeal is dismissed.
The Costs of the Church and the State are awarded against us.
A pamphlet defending Relationships and Sexuality Education is launched.
Fund raising gig held in Temple Bar with Don Baker, Mick Hanly and Frank
Gallagher.
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