LEAFLETS CLAIMING the Lisbon Treaty could change Ireland's laws on issues such as abortion, euthanasia and prostitution, and even restrict the size of Irish families, have been distributed in churches and households throughout the country, an Oireachtas committee meeting heard yesterday.
Fine Gael MEP Colm Burke showed members of the Oireachtas Committee on European Affairs a leaflet distributed by a group called Cóir headlined "Lisbon: a step too far".
Under a section headlined "Don't lose the right to decide our values", the leaflet claims that under the Lisbon Treaty, the European Court and the Charter of Fundamental Rights can force Ireland to change its laws on issues such as prostitution, abortion, drugs and euthanasia. It also warns of changes in "how we raise and educate our children".
Mr Burke raised the issue during a discussion on the Lisbon Treaty in which seven Irish MEPs participated. Several MEPs and committee members expressed concern that such literature was being widely distributed.
Fianna Fáil MEP Seán Ó Neachtain said he was "very perturbed" to learn that a similar leaflet had been sent to households in his constituency. "This misleading information is having an effect," he added.
Another leaflet from an unnamed group warns of a "Godless Europe" where abortion will be "forced" on Ireland and restrictions on family size will be introduced.
Labour's Joe Costello said he had seen similar leaflets in Dublin's Pro-Cathedral, along with literature from other anti-Lisbon Treaty groups such as Libertas. One leaflet from an unnamed organisation, he told the committee, claimed that Pope Benedict XVI opposed the treaty.
Fianna Fáil TD Noel Treacy said it was "outrageous" that such leaflets were available in places of worship. "I cannot understand how churches can be used in this way," he added.
Senator Phil Prendergast (Labour) warned that the availability of the literature in churches gave "a certain credibility" to the arguments of the groups responsible for distributing the leaflets. "The churches are being used as a tool," she said.
The committee's chairman, Bernard Durkan of Fine Gael, said he would invite church representatives to discuss the matter with the committee. "This is something the churches should be concerned about themselves," he said.
Scott Schittl, a campaign co-ordinator for Cóir, told The Irish Times that the group was distributing two different leaflets - one on values, the other on economic issues - outside churches, GAA matches and shopping centres. It has run campaign ads in the Irish Catholic, the Irish Family, and Alive! magazine, and was distributing a "Catholic voter's guide" to the Lisbon Treaty.
Mr Schittl rejected accusations that Cóir's campaign was based on scaremongering.
Door-to-door: leaflet excerpts
Cóir
"It is up to you - and the rest of the Irish people
- to decide what kind of society we want. But legal experts have
warned that our wishes could be simply overruled if the Lisbon
Treaty is passed. That's because, under the Lisbon Treaty, we'll be
made subject to the EU Court and the EU's Charter of Fundamental
Rights, which can force us to change our laws on issues as
important as:
• How we raise and educate our children
• Legalization of prostitution and hard drugs
• Abortion and euthanasia."
Unnamed organisation
"The Lisbon Treaty clearly states it will take full
control over demographics (the control of human reproduction). This
is the exact law China has to restrict couples to having just ONE
CHILD.
Ireland's tax rates already penalise the family unit. What is Europe's plan regarding childbirth?"