First Amendment Of The Constitution Of Ireland
The First Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland was effected by the First Amendment of the Constitution Act, 1939, and signed into law on 2 September 1939. Its purpose was to extend the constitutional definition of "time of war" to include a period during which a war is occurring in which the state is not a direct participant. Its intention was to allow the government to exercise emergency powers during World War II (known in Ireland as The Emergency), despite the fact that the state was neutral. The amendment means that the state may exercise these powers provided the Oireachtas (parliament) declares a "national emergency".
Read more about First Amendment Of The Constitution Of Ireland: Changes To The Text, Background
Famous quotes containing the words amendment, constitution and/or ireland:
“... when we shall have our amendment to the Constitution of the United States, everyone will think it was always so, just exactly as many young people believe that all the privileges, all the freedom, all the enjoyments which woman now possesses were always hers. They have no idea of how every single inch of ground that she stands upon to-day has been gained by the hard work of some little handful of women of the past.”
—Susan B. Anthony (1820–1906)
“Your Constitution is all sail and no anchor.”
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“In Ireland they try to make a cat cleanly by rubbing its nose in its own filth. Mr. Joyce has tried the same treatment on the human subject. I hope it may prove successful.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)