It places the individual at the heart of its activities, by establishing the citizenship of the Union and by creating an area of freedom, security and justice.” Here the fact that the EU is based on democracy and that this is connected to the value of the individual, is clearly stated. [...] The legal basis for the proposal is in the first place Article 114 of the Treaty on the Func- tioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’), which provides for the adoption of measures to However the Commission motivation is very limited in one aspect, which is the ensure the establishment and functioning of the internal market.10 basic question: ‘why should the EU as EU be concerned with national electi. [...] Free Speech and referenda in Ireland In 1983, the Constitution was amended to insert an overt protection for the unborn in an effort to offset the possibility that a ruling similar to in the United States could The right to freedom of speech has always been a brittle feature of the Irish Consti- materialise in Ireland and legalise abortion over the heads of the people and their tution. [...] An Taoiseach, found that it was unconstitutional press, assembly, and the right to petition the Government for a redress of griev- for the Government of the day to allocate and spend public money on campaigning ances.’18 in a referendum to change the Constitution.20 This led to the setting up of the Ref- erendum Commission, which would oversee future referenda, although its func- At the time the I. [...] This was seen repeatedly throughout the Irish abortion referendum posters plastered across the country, they can be removed only if not hung correctly whereby the inherent issues at stake in the vote – the measure of rights the Irish or lack the publishers’ name.’48 It is difficult to verify the extent to which this is true, Constitution and ergo the law would afford to the unborn child in the con.
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