Eighty-seven per cent of voters in the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown Students’ Union (ITBSU) today voted to mandate the union to campaign for a repeal of the eighth amendment.
Nearly 340 students voted in the referendum, with 293 voting to support a campaign to repeal the eighth amendment. Forty-two students voted against the motion.
ITBSU will now join numerous unions across the country that have voted overwhelmingly to support a campaign to repeal the eighth amendment.
The Acting President of ITBSU, Hayley Keogh, said that the union is “pretty happy to be mandated now” to support a repeal of the eighth amendment. Speaking to The University Times, she explained that the union now plans to hold more information sessions on repeal and to co-ordinate more with the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) and its campaign on the issue.
“A lot of students are not informed”, she explained “so we want to work more towards that”.
Speaking to The University Times, Chair of the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown Colours Society Luke Daly said that it was “really cool to see such a turnout”. Daly campaigned for students to support repealing the eighth. He said that during campaigning there was a “fair bit of engagement from across the board”.
Explaining that the college has a mix of mature students as well as those in the 18 to 24 bracket, Daly said that the vote shows that the debate “is not just about young people. It is about all the people of Ireland”.
In an email statement to The University Times, USI’s Dublin Region Officer Aisling Cusack said that “it was a really successful day in IT Blanchardstown where students were enthusiastic to ensure their students’ union had a pro-choice stance”.
“No one has had a chance to vote on this issue in the last 35 years. However, it is evident that students across the country are eager and ready to repeal the 8th Amendment”, she continued.
