Ireland: Voters reject amendments redefining family, women

Irish voters have rejected government-proposed constitutional amendments designed to redefine the make-up of family and a woman's role "within the household."

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who supported the changes, conceded loss, saying the amendments were "defeated comprehensively on a respectable turnout."

"It was our responsibility to convince the majority of people to vote 'Yes,'" he said, "and we clearly failed to do so."

The country's major political parties supported the changes as well.

Proponents saw the referendum as a chance to modernize society by updating the 1937 constitution.

Irish voters legalized divorce (1995), same-sex marriage (2015) and abortion (2018) in similar constitutional referendums in the past.

What were the proposed changes?

The first of the proposed amendments would have expanded the definition of family by replacing marriage with "marriage and other durable relationships" as legally defining its basis.

The second would have removed what Varadkar called "very old-fashioned and very sexist language about women" from an existing amendment. The language he referred to speaks of a "mother's duty in the home" and the possible conflict that work could have with that role.

Moreover, the second amendment on Saturday's ballot would have added a clause saying the state would, "strive to support the provision of care by members of a family to one another."

Those opposed to the changes argued against their wording as well as the potential unintended consequences they represented. Ramifications for taxes and citizenship, for instance, were flagged as concerns.

Another major point of contention was a fear that the soft wording of "striving" would redefine caregiving as a private responsibility, not one of the state.

Once staunchly conservative and overwhelmingly Catholic, Ireland has grown increasingly diverse and more socially liberal over the years. Varadkar, who is openly gay, is currently serving his second term as Taoiseach, or prime minister.

js/mm (AFP, AP, Reuters)