Nineteenth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland

The Nineteenth Amendment of Bunreacht na hÉireann, the constitution of the Republic of Ireland, introduced changes to Articles 2 and 3 of the constitution required by the 1998 Belfast Agreement (also known as the Good Friday Agreement). Prior to 1999, Articles 2 and 3 made the controversial claim that the whole island of Ireland formed one single "national territory". By means of the Nineteenth Amendment Articles 2 and 3 were changed to an aspiration towards creating a united Ireland by peaceful means.

Related Topics:
Bunreacht na hÉireann - Republic of Ireland - Articles 2 and 3 - 1998 - Belfast Agreement - 1999 - Ireland

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The Nineteenth Amendment was approved by referendum in 1998. However the Irish Government did not want the changes to Articles 2 and 3 to be made until it could confirm that other aspects of the Belfast Agreement had been complied with. For this reason the Nineteenth Amendment did not itself alter Articles 2 and 3. Rather it introduced a special mechanism whereby changes to Articles 2 and 3 could be brought about at a future date by a formal declaration made by the Government.

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The Nineteenth Amendment of the Constitution Act, 1998 was approved by referendum on 22 May, 1998 and signed into law on 3 June of the same year. The Government declaration was made on 2 December, 1999, bringing the changes to Articles 2 and 3 and certain other parts of the constitution into effect.

Related Topics:
22 May - 3 June - 2 December

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