Contraception and abortion issues: The ongoing controversy over birth-control legislation exercised the minds of diplomats in the 1970s, writes Deaglán de Bréadún.
An American women's rights activist caused a stir in the Department of Foreign Affairs with her inquiries and forthright opinions on Irish laws against contraception and abortion. The time was the mid-1970s and Ireland's restrictive birth-control legislation was unique in the western world.
According to a file of documents from the Consulate General of Ireland in New York, released under the 30-year rule, feminist activist Irene Davall, a resident of downtown Manhattan, sought information in 1974 on the Irish legislation. She took a continuing interest in the issue and her views became known in Dublin, to the obvious discomfort of officialdom.
In April 1975, a telex message from departmental headquarters, marked "urgent" and "restricted", sought further information about Ms Davall. In response, a telex from the consulate stated: "Mr Lillis [Michael Lillis, an official at the consulate] gave (an) interview at her request several weeks ago (to) this lady who intimated shock at our laws regarding contraception and abortion. She stated she was going to inform Irish women of their natural rights."
A further telex was sent from Dublin, this time directly to Mr Lillis: "Have you any further data on this lady by way of information on her background etc? No need to make inquiries but in (the) interview she may have proffered information on herself . . . what impression generally did you form of her?"
On May 8th, Mr Lillis replied: "My impression of Irene Devall (sic) was generally unfavourable. She struck me as something of a fanatic. I have learned that she recently stated on a TV discussion programme that most of the prostitutes in London were Irish girls who had been forced to go to London through the absence of facilities for contraception and abortion. I also understand that she is active in the pro-abortion lobby here and is moreover obsessed with Ireland as an instance of extreme repression from her point of view."
Birth-control was a sensitive issue in government circles around this time. The previous July, taoiseach Liam Cosgrave, and six other Fine Gael TDs had voted against their own party's Bill to allow married couples access to contraceptives, thereby ensuring its defeat.
Ireland's distinct legislative approach attracted international attention throughout the early 1970s. An earlier entry in the file features an article from the Baltimore Sun dated May 5th, 1971, in which one of the paper's staff correspondents reported from Dublin that "Senator Mary Burke Robinson, an attractive and brilliant law professor at Trinity College, has introduced a private members' Bill in the Senate aimed at changing the law which currently makes the importation of contraceptives, even for personal use, a criminal act".
A similar report from another US journalist appeared in the New York Times of the same date. Kevin Rush, consul-general of Ireland in New York, wrote to Dennis Holmes at the information division of the department in Dublin, remarking on the "strange coincidence" of such similar articles appearing on the same day.
Was it possible, he continued, that these articles had a "common source?" Mr Rush speculated that they might have been inspired by one of the Irish current affairs magazines, "or perhaps some pub frequented by Dublin journalists where this kind of 'knocking' of Ireland's establishments, clerical and governmental, is at present in vogue." He expressed concern that a reactionary image of Ireland was being created.
In a robust response, Mr Holmes said he found "nothing strange or sinister" about the articles. They reflected the fact that a great debate on contraception and allied subjects was taking place in Ireland. He disagreed that the publication of such reports was a bad thing.
Later that month the famous episode of the contraceptive train occurred, when Irish feminists travelled to Belfast, where contraceptives could be purchased legally, and brought them back to Dublin in open defiance of the law in the Republic.
Reports on the incident were sent to Mr Holmes from the US, including an item in the New York-based Daily News headed: "Pill-throwing colleens give birth to revolt".
The article breathlessly described how "the 'pill-train' carrying women's lib militants roared back into Dublin and a brief scuffle broke out when they hurled contraceptives across the customs barrier to hundreds of cheering women".
Two years later, in 1973, the New York office of Bord Fáilte sent the consulate a copy of a letter written in response to a query from a married couple in New Jersey who wanted to know if they could bring contraceptives with them on their forthcoming trip to Ireland.
Senior travel adviser Willy Fahy wrote to the couple to point out that, "it is illegal to import any kind of contraceptive device, however, with regard to birth control pills, you are allowed to take whatever personal pills that are recommended by your physician".