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Jameela Jamil has opened up about having an abortion when she was younger.

The Good Life actor took to social media to reveal that she underwent the procedure after falling pregnant at a young age. 

The 33-year-old said that the decision was the best one she ever made as she wasn't ready for it emotionally, psychologically or financially. 

Jameela Jamil

She wrote, ''I had an abortion when I was young, and it was the best decision I have ever made for me and, for the baby I didn’t want and wasn’t ready for emotionally, psychologically and financially. So many children will end up in foster homes.''

She continued, ''So many lives ruined. So very cruel.''

Jameela was speaking out against the new anti-abortion law, HB 481, in Georgia, America that will be coming into effect in 2020.

The law will ban abortion at ''any stage of pregnancy.''

Jameela called the law, ''upsetting, inhumane, and blatantly demonstrative of a hatred of women.''

She added, ''It is a disregard for our rights, bodies, mental health, and essentially a punishment for rape victims, forcing to carry the baby of their rapist. I’m so stunned that our world is not only behind, it’s moving backward. This hurts my heart in so many different ways, and in particular as a rape victim. I can’t imagine having fallen pregnant and being FORCED BY LAW to carry his baby to term, and see someone who looked like him every day, otherwise, I can get the death penalty?!''

Jameela Jamil

Her followers showered her with supportive comments, with one saying, ''I’ve been loudly screaming this since becoming pregnant myself – forcing a woman to carry a baby she does not want should be considered torture. I live in Canada. Abortion here is a non-issue. I’m angered for Georgia and the US.''

Others were not of the same mind, with one writing, ''Just say it was the best for you, I understand. Don't say that being aborted was the best for that baby. Your baby. It wasn't.''

This is the first time that the former model has spoken about her abortion but she pleaded with her followers to help in fighting the ban and she hopes that by talking about what she went through, it will help other women to feel less alone. 

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It was announced yesterday that upskirting will become a criminal offence in England, carrying a two-year prison sentence.

The offence of taking photos under a person's clothing without their permission is currently still legal in Ireland, but is illegal in Scotland. 

Gina Martin has been an ardent campaigner for the criminalisation of upskirting for over two years, and said she was exhausted and happy after it was decided the offence became illegal.

The bill passed its third reading in the House of Lords yesterday, meaning upskirting is to be a criminal offence. 

In June, the Ministry of Justice claimed it would support the ban which formed an aspect of the Voyeurism Offences Bill.

Gina Martin, a freelance writer from London, has headed the campaign since her own experience as a victim of upskirting herself at a music festival in 2017.

"I am over the moon. Upskirting will be illegal. After becoming a victim and recognising a gap in the law, I partnered with Ryan Whelan of Gibson Dunn and began 18 months of exhaustive, emotional and life-changing work."

"Now? We have changed the law! I always thought politics was impenetrable but with the right help and willpower you can do it. We did it. We made upskirting a sexual offence!"

"I am exhausted and so so happy!"

Gina said she spotted one of the men who upskirted her sharing the image on his mobile in front of her. Despite grabbing the phone and showing it to police, four days later the case was closed.

The offence will gain a two-year sentence; victims previously had to try other avenues to get justice, such as outraging public decency.

We think it's high time this became a legal offence in Ireland. Congrats Gina, you're one badass lady.

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If you're a serial voucher giver or have a collection of them – listen up.

The Government has given the nod for new legislation which will require all gift vouchers to have an expiry date of at least five years.

The Consumer Protection (Gift Vouchers) Bill 2018 is expected to be passed early next year. 

Addressing the matter, TD Heather Humphreys said: "Every year consumers lose out because their gift vouchers go out of date."

"Part of the problem is the great variation on expiry dates which can range from as little as six months to 12 months to 24 months."

"This often leads to confusion amongst consumers. By having a set five-year expiry date on all gift vouchers, we will provide certainty to everyone involved," added the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation.

The Bill will also include two conditions, the first means you and I will no longer have to spend that voucher all in one go.

And the second will tackle the cancellation of the gift card if the receivers name is spelt incorrectly, and a charge to amend the name will also be abolished.

Commenting on the provisions, the Minister said: "It’s wrong that consumers should have to spend a voucher in full in one transaction."

"Similarly, it isn’t fair that businesses can penalise consumers simply because of a wrong letter in a name."

"I’m glad that these two issues were brought to my attention during the public consultation so that we can now address them as part of this Bill," she added.

The Bill received cross-party support.

We for one are delighted with the new measures.

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Not many of our peers can say that we have read the full Irish Constitution, and yet it’s the most important political document in a country’s legislature.

Following the removal of the article regarding blasphemy, and of course the 8th Amendment, it’s time to turn back to the Irish Constitution, and examine what is left to be done to bring this document straight into the 21st century.

To start, the sexism, elitism and reductionist standards are alien to modern life, and the Irish people deserve a legal document which accurately represents all of its citizens.

In case we have forgotten from secondary school political history classes, Bunreacht na hÉireann was drafted way back in 1937, by the hugely conservative Éamon de Valera, who perfectly represented the conservative Catholic Church-state environment of the era.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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By writing a new Constitution, de Valera embarked upon a very risky political strategy considering Irish political life at the time was hugely volatile. It replaced the Irish Free State Constitution of 1922, and therefore erased Article 3 which guaranteed “discrimination without distinction of sex.

He revitalised his dream of Catholic women serving good, Catholic men in the home. Religious leaders also had a far-too-big input into the Constitution, including men who are now recognised as protecting child abusers.

Now, of course the entire religious community of Ireland weren't involved in abuse scandals, but it's important to note that a large group of them were, and were protected for years to the detriment of abuse survivors.

The Constitution has caused many a controversy, among them is the X case, where a young woman who was raped was denied the right to travel to the UK for an abortion. This was changed officially in 1992, as the 14th Amendment.

The right to divorce was only ratified in the mid-1990s, and even then partners had to be officially separated for four years. An annulment was next to impossible to get, even for those who were stuck in situations of abuse.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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The protection for the life of the unborn still causes turbulence, seeing as it dramatically impedes female healthcare even outside of reproduction.

The legislation repealing the 8th has yet to come into practice, and is showing no sign of entering the healthcare system anytime soon despite it's valuable victory which took in 66 per cent of votes.

The right for members of the LGBQ+ community to marry was only passed in 2015. You cannot run for President until you turn 35, which would have ruled out some of Ireland’s major political candidates in the 1930s.

As recently as 2015, a shocking 73.1 per cent of the population voted against reducing the age to 21. Irish law appears to believe that age brings wisdom, rather than actual experience.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Many members of Irish society struggle with the union of the Catholic religion with the Constitution. It’s completely saturated with it. The opening lines to this day read:

“In the Name of the Most Holy Trinity, from Whom is all authority and to Whom, as our final end, all actions both of men and States must be referred, We, the people of Éire, Humbly acknowledging all our obligations to our Divine Lord, Jesus Christ.”

The oath sworn by the President of Ireland is “under almighty God.”

Article 44 on religion enshrines freedom of worship, but also notes that “The State acknowledges that the homage of public worship is due to Almighty God. It shall hold His Name in reverence, and shall respect and honour religion.”

So there’s not much room for expansion there, to say the least.

I mean, seriously? Four million inhabitants on the island, and the Constitution fails to separate Church and State, fails to acknowledge that there is another religion besides Catholicism, and other nuanced beliefs and practices.

Ireland is a diverse place, an Emerald Isle of nationalities and cultures, yet this piece of paper essentially only benefits elite, Catholic men in upper class positions. Like Éamon De Valera. Who had ZERO LAW EXPERIENCE.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Éamon De Valera cast a shadow over Irish women when he drafted it by ignoring pleas from Irish women’s councils to aid in writing the charter.

One of the most intensely problematic, not to mention out-dated articles is 41.2 the infamous ‘women’s place in the home’ section of the Constitution. By now there are zero doubts as to the sexism surrounding the enshrined words.

It reads as follows:

In particular, the State recognises that by her life within the home, woman gives to the State a support without which the common good cannot be achieved.

The State shall, therefore, endeavour to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labour to the neglect of their duties in the home.”

This essentially claims that women are needed to carry out their housework duties and care for children so that the real work (by men) can be carried out elsewhere, i.e. running the damn country. The duties of the home are elevated far above labour outside of domesticity.

Image: Oireachtas

Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan says that the issue of Article 41.2 is primarily one of gender equality, and it’s next to impossible to disagree with him. The article limits the role of women entirely, and completely rejects the notion of men as carers and fathers, which is also unfair.

Men must take responsibility as carers of those who are vulnerable in society, not simply children. The elderly, disabled people, sick relatives and friends are all part of this category, which places most of the burden on women alone for their seemingly ‘nurturing qualities’.

The contention surrounding the article is whether or not to replace it with an alternative, or just delete it altogether. We’re thinking… DELETE.

The emotional and difficult referendum on the 8th amendment has had a clear impact on Irish society, especially on Irish women, who have recognised the inequality which still plagues our country, such as sexual assault and violence, discrimination and unequal pay.

The Constitution Bill (38th Amendment) must make its way through both houses of the Oireachtas before the Irish people can have their say on Article 41.2 via a referendum.

Independent TD Clare Daly said in response to Charlie Flanagan that she “feels like laughing, to think that you see yourself as a champion of gender equality given some of the decisions of your government.”

Image: Oireachtas

Another Independent representative Mick Wallace added his own negative comments to the pile:

“I find it interesting that you speak of gender equality in the workplace when the greatest barrier to that equality is the cost of childcare and your government has done bugger all about it.”

Ireland has the second highest-price of childcare in the OECD, meaning that it is still mostly women who struggle to return to work following pregnancy as the costs of childcare make the situation impossible.

Orla O’Connor, acting Director of the National Women’s Council of Ireland, later added that Article 41.2 “has not supported the home and family, and in our opinion has diminished the position of women” in Irish society.

Dr Laura Cahillane of the University of Limerick’s school of law described the Article as “an embarrassment”, as well as “effectively useless in law”.

A Constitution is meant to embody the moral and legal aspirations of an entire country and it’s individual citizens, we shouldn’t forget this. Women have the most to gain from changes to the Constitution.

All of the civic service committee members which Éamon de Valera employed in order to help him draft the document were men.

Archbishop of Dublin John Charles McQuaid as well as the head of the Supreme Court were two major influences, both male. Only three women were TDs during this time, and none of them said a word during the Dáil debate on the matter.

Essentially, we aren’t part of this document, and this document isn’t part of us. We make up half of this population, and yet not a single word of the parchment portrays the female experience.

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We all have a love/hate relationship with our mobile network, but news that has just surfaced might permanently switch you over to the hate side.

Four of Ireland's largest telecommunications businesses were served enforcement actions for breaking consumer law last year.

According to a new Watchdog report, the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) said that Vodafone, Meteor, Three and UPC failed to adequately notify consumers of their rights regarding cancelling contracts they entered into online or over the phone.

The network companies are also said to have misled customers about their legal rights to cancel distance contracts.

A total of 62 enforcements were served under these breaches to the traders last year.

So, it might be worthwhile checking out your contract now ladies. 

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Amal Clooney is a renowned human rights lawyer and pretty much an all-round inspiration for many young women around the world.

This week she shared some of her legal wisdom with one lucky law student from Galway.

​Loughrea native Catrina Chahin was lucky enough to meet her idol at the September session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The 23-year old has just finished her masters in International Human Rights Law at NUIG.

Amal was on hand to give a talk on fair trial rights and issues surround judicial accountability.

Catrina said that she had a chance to witness first-hand how Amal takes the time to speak with young lawyers about their goals. She told UTV Ireland:

“I was asking her how to best go about practicing law in the international sphere and she was just saying to be determined and don't be deterred by statistics which obviously make it seem very difficult.”

Catriona wants to go on and practice law internationally and was looking for some guidance. Amal told her not to be deterred by the statistics which make it seem so difficult.

"She recommend that I qualify as a lawyer, solicitor or barrister, while I'm still in the academic mind-set basically and then I can always go back to working for NGOs.”

While it may seem that Amal, who specialises in public international law, international law and human rights was someone who had her sights set on success from a young age, Catriona says it was the opposite.

“She told me that when she finished university she never had a 10 year plan and that you never know what opportunities will arise.”

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This evening at his official residence in the Phoenix Park, President Michael D Higgins signed off the Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015.

This means that the result of May's historic referendum has now been enshrined in law.

A number of legal challenges brought against the result meant tonight's signing was delayed somewhat, but all the disputes were struck down at earlier High Court hearings.

The Irish people had voted by a margin of 62-38 percent and marriage in this country may now take place between two persons "without distinction as to their sex".

The Bill will also be introduced to the Dáil next month.

Although it was originally hoped that the first marriages between same-sex partners could take place as early as next month or October, it seems more likely now that those ceremonies will be held towards the end of this year.

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Tulisa has been found guilty of the assault of a celebrity blogger at V Festival.

The former X-Factor judge was accused of hitting Savvas Morgan at the festival in Essex and was ordered to pay £3,020.

Savvas Morgan received £100 in compensation while £2,700 went towards the cost of prosecution.

This is the second time Tulisa has been in court this week as her drugs case was thrown out of court as the judge believed there was reason to believe the journalist involved had lied.

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Madonna thinks she can get away with just about anything and this just proves she can. The singer was due to take part in jury duty in New York recently but she decided to skip it because she had other plans. Watch the video for the full story.

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