Senator Sharon Keoghan believes that the refusal of the Government parties and the other main groups in the Oireachtas to accept her nomination to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality is due to their intolerance of discussion of alternative positions on issues such as gender dysphoria and the biological reality of men and women.
Senator Keoghan claims her nomination is being opposed because of her questioning of the guidelines proposed to be introduced as part of the bid to amend definitions employed under the Equality Acts. She has criticised the fuzzy definitions and criteria that currently govern the gender recognition certification, where anyone can change gender by simply declaring they are now a different sex and obtaining a certificate.
Despite the attempt by some parties including Sinn Féin and Labour, whose Senators opposed Keoghan’s nomination, to impose a narrow ideological view on the issues concerned, there is wide concern across the political spectrum and indeed the medical and legal professions regarding the undermining of actual equality legislation as it pertains to women and girls.
One of the key areas of focus for some feminist groups is the danger posed to women prisoners for example if a male decides to avail of gender recognition certification to be held in a female section where evidence proves they can present a danger to women inmates and staff.
The new committee will examine the recommendations that have emerged from the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality, and Senator Keoghan claims that the exclusion of dissenting views will “hamper any chance of addressing multiple serious issues facing women in Ireland today.”
Senator Keoghan told Gript that she believes that her exclusion from the committee is a reflection of the intolerance of other groups towards any dissenting opinion on this and indeed other issues.
In her statement, she said that this is “a sad snapshot of today’s politics, where both government and “Opposition” politicians sing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to issues of major societal importance.”
“It shows up their attitude towards open debate and free speech, when they collude to freeze independent voices out of the debate as they do not think their own opinions should be subject to challenge.
“We will now have a Committee on Gender Equality whose members views on gender have no basis in biology and whose wholesale belief in gender ideology will hamper any chance of addressing multiple serious issues facing women in Ireland today.”