Category: Irish Society

Blawg Review #164

| 16 Comments
| Blogging, data retention, Irish Society, James Joyce, Law

0. Prolegomenon, or Why me?
Dust jacket of Gabler (ed) Joyce Ulysses via James Joyce centre websiteToday is Bloomsday, the centrepiece of a weeklong festival in Dublin celebrating the day in 1904 on which the events of James Joyce’s novel Ulysses unfold, which is the day Joyce first formally went out with Nora Barnacle (the story is told in the enthralling movie Nora; other movies with 16 June references include The Producers and Before Sunrise). In the novel, all human life is there; and Eamon Fitzgerald’s Rainy Day is currently by far the best guide to the important things in life: democracy, football, and technology. Expect a Bloomsday post today (this is last year’s; update: this is this year’s). Just like Oh Brother, Where art Thou?, the novel loosely parallels Homer’s Odyssey, and this blogpost will very very loosely parallel Joyce’s Ulysses (or at least his chapter headings).…

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Say No to Ageism

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| Irish Society, Media and Communications

'Say No to Ageism' week poster, via the Equality Authority website.This week is Say No to Ageism Week. It is an initiative of the National Council for the Advancement of Older People, the Equality Authority, and the Health Service Executive; and it will be launched by today in the Equality Authority’s offices by Maire Hoctor TD, Minister of State with responsibility for Older People.

Ageism is discrimination against older people, whether by stereotyping or prejudice or by unjust differences in treatment. It often takes the form of attributing fixed and negative characteristics to older people regardless of the personal attributes and ambitions. Say No to Ageism Week is a national campaign seeking to raise awareness of ageism and its prevalence in Irish society and to encourage a commitment to change, espcially in the public sector. Good reasons to change are set out by Eleanor Fitzsimons in this morning’s Irish Times (sub req’d) [with added links]:

Putting an end to ageism and compulsory retirement in Ireland

How long should Charlie Munger (84), number two in the world’s most successful company, Berkshire Hathaway, wait for his boss Warren Buffet (78) to call it a day? Should Philip Roth (75) unplug his PC and stop mining the rich seam that has yielded some of his best work ever?

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Complaints against lawyers

| 2 Comments
| Irish Law, Irish Society, Legal Services Regulation

Department of Justice building, via their siteThe Office of the Legal Services Ombudsman for England and Wales and the Office of the Scottish Legal Services Ombudsman were established in 1990. There are plans afoot for their reform (Scotland | England & Wales) but the basic principle of independent oversight of disciplinary matters for the legal professions will not only remain intact but be enhanced. Now, it seems that Irish law is soon to adopt this principle too. Carol Coulter has an interesting article about recent developments in this regrad in today’s Irish Times (sub req’d); some extracts:

Ombudsman will oversee complaints against lawyers

A Legal Services Ombudsman who will be appointed by the Government for up to six years will have oversight of the disciplining of solicitors and barristers, and of their recruitment and training. The ombudsman will be appointed under the Legal Services Ombudsman Bill, expected to be published next week.

The Bill was originally part of the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2006 [2006 press release], but was taken out of this Bill for further development in the wake of controversy concerning solicitors Michael Lynn and Thomas Byrne. Under it, members of the public will be able to appeal to the ombudsman if they are dissatisfied with the outcome of complaints to the disciplinary bodies of the Law Society or Bar Council.

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Charity Premiere: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

| 2 Comments
| Cinema, television and theatre, Irish Society

aois2.pngOn Thursday 7 February 2008, Aois agus Eolais – the Centre for Ageing, Neuroscience and the Humanities will host a charity premiere of the extraordinary movie The Diving Bell and the Butterfly in aid of Stroke Research in the Adelaide and Meath Hospital Dublin, incorporating the National Children’s Hospital, Tallaght (AMNCH). It will begin with a reception at 6.30pm in the Atrium (map), Trinity College Dublin, followed by the screening at 8.00pm, Irish Film Institute (map), Eustace Street, Dublin 2. Subscription is €50, and further information and inviations are available from Catherine Talbot at 01 414 2432 or Marian Hughes at 087 286 4527.

Movie poster, via About.com.The movie The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (official site | imdb | wikipedia) is based on the book Le scaphandre et le papillon by Jean-Dominique Bauby (amazon | NYT review | wikipedia), in which Bauby recounts the effects of a catastrophic stroke and weeks of deep coma from which he surfaced into “locked-in syndrome“, mentally alert but deprived of movement and speech, leaving the blinking of his left eyelid as his only means of communication. Directed by Julian Schnabel, the movie based on the book is shot from Bauby’s perspective, offering us views of his memories and imagination and his struggle to communicate and come to terms with his condition.…

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Justice shall be administered in public

| 9 Comments
| Irish Society, Media and Communications, Open Justice

The Four Courts, by Darragh Sherwin, via FlickrArticle 34.1 of the Constitution provides that

Justice shall be administered in courts established by law by judges appointed in the manner provided by this Constitution, and, save in such special and limited cases as may be prescribed by law, shall be administered in public.

Giving judgment in the Supreme Court yesterday in a very sad case, Hardiman J began by saying:

On the hearing of this appeal the Court was requested on both sides of the case to take such steps as were possible to prevent the publication of the applicant’s name or at of any detail which might identify him. This was requested on the basis that he was, undisputedly, a person under a disability.

The Court did not consider that it had, in these proceedings, any power to make an order in that regard. However the Court agreed to, and did, request any representatives of the media who might be present not to publish his name and said that it would not itself do so. The Court now repeats this request to any person who may wish to report this case either for the ordinary media or for the purposes of law reporting.

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Another good day for privacy

| 4 Comments
| Digital Rights, Irish Society, Media and Communications

Regtel logo, via their websiteIt’s a pretty common occurrence: your mobile phone beeps to record an incoming text message, and when you open it, it’s an unsolicited and unwelcome marketing message. Some are trivial, like your network’s most recent offer to customers on your tariff. But some are insidious, seemingly innocuous but containing great danger. Most people delete them, but some are sucked in, and the mobile phone costs (never cheap) suddenly become ruinous, as customers rack up huge bills on foot of premium rate charges incurred in following up on some of the marketing texts. Regtel, which regulates premium rate mobile phone services, has a useful page on stopping unwanted premium rate messages.

Data Protection Office logo, via their website.Those who receive the texts, and those who are taken in by the scams, can complain to Regtel or to the office of the Data Protection Commissioner, which are working together to combat mobile spam. So, today, following many such compaints, and an investigation by Regtel, officials from the Data Protection Commisioner’s office raided the offices of a number of companies involved in the mobile phone text marketing business (Ireland.com Breaking News | RTÉ | Marie Boran in Silicon Republic). …

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Why should politicians not criticise judges?

| 1 Comment
| Irish Law, Irish Society

ICCL LogoIn a report published last night, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), a leading and well-respected independent organisation dedicated to protecting and promoting human rights, called for the introduction of a Judicial Council to strengthen the accountability of the Irish judiciary (see RTÉ | Irish Examiner | Irish Independent (Dearbhail McDonald) | Irish Times (here and here)). Tanya Ward, Senior Research and Policy Officer with the ICCL, undertook a year of independent and original research, including in-depth interviews with senior members of the Irish judiciary, to produce Justice Matters. Independence, Accountability and the Irish Judiciary (summary (pdf); Part I (pdf); Part II (pdf)).

It is a hugely important development, and very welcome. For example, a major finding from the research is that complaints against judges have not been processed expeditiously, and the Government’s handling of the issue of judicial complaints is criticised; so the report’s central recommendation is that the State finally establish a long-overdue Judicial Council, to hold judges to account where necessary whilst also respecting the constitutionally protected independence of the judiciary; and it also recommends a judicial Code of Ethics and greater transparency in the process of appointing judges.…

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This is ‘Say No to Ageism’ Week 2007 – II

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| Irish Society

Say No to Ageism week poster via Equality AuthoritySome updates to yesterday’s post.

First, yesterday did indeed see the Irish launch of the European Healthy Ageing Project 2004-2007‘s report on Healthy Ageing – a Challenge for Europe (pdf). According to a piece by Fiona Gartland in today’s Irish Times (sub req’d):

Irish people have a shorter life expectancy than people in other wealthy EU countries, a European report on healthy ageing has found. Healthy Ageing – A Challenge for Europe, launched in Dublin yesterday, said that countries with high gross domestic product (GDP) usually have longer life expectancy, but this was not the case in Ireland. …

Dr Paula Gilvarry, president of the Irish Medical Organisation, said Ireland has higher than EU-average death rates from circulatory diseases, cancer and respiratory diseases. “The figures show that we are still playing catch-up in terms of investment in health,” she said.

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