Ireland's divorce laws are causing "conflict and uncertainty" for children, according to a new campaign group urging women to vote Yes in the divorce referendum on May 24th.
Women For Yes claims the Constitution places "harmful restrictions" on divorce and is causing upset for families affected.
Currently, married couples must have lived apart for four out of the past five years to qualify for divorce.
A Yes vote would see that condition removed, and instead allow the Oireachtas to change the amount of time required.
The Government is planning to reduce the waiting time to two years if the referendum is passed.
The referendum will be held on May 24th, alongside the local and European elections.
"Uncertainty and expense"
According to Women For Yes, there's now a need for a "more human, modern and compassionate response" to the difficulties faced by separating families.
Karen Kiernan, CEO of lone parent group One Family, said separated couples are living in limbo under the current divorce laws.
She observed: "The way parents have described it to us is that they can't move forward with their lives.
"They're still legally entwined with somebody, when really the may have everything settled - they're actually just waiting to go in and apply for their divorce.
"It's not meaningful to them, and it causes uncertainty and expense. It's just not a compassionate response to people, and that's what we're looking for with a Yes vote in this referendum."
Chair of the National Women's Council, Ellen O'Malley Dunlop, said women experiencing domestic violence need a shorter divorce process.
She argued: "Ireland has changed quite considerably, and I think people are much more open to finding the right thing for themselves.
"We must never forget there are abusive relationships - the longer children are left in those situations, that is much worse for children at the end of the day."
Law Society
Separately, the Law Society has also backed the proposal to reduce the divorce waiting time to two years.
Today, we are launching a major report on Divorce in Ireland, endorsing a ‘yes’ vote in the upcoming #Divorceref and other legal reforms. You can read it for yourself here: https://t.co/HbG36k1ajv pic.twitter.com/gWJNTkdksF
— Law Society Ireland (@LawSocIreland) May 2, 2019
It's among 11 recommendations the society makes in a new report on Ireland's divorce laws.
The report’s principal author, Dr Geoffrey Shannon, explained: "While each case is unique, the current requirement to live apart for a period of four years prior to the institution of divorce proceedings may now be considered too long.
"It may result in a duplication of legal expenses and protracted proceedings, where parties are involved in both judicial separation and divorce proceedings over time."
Other proposals put forward by the report include establishing a specialised family court structure and the development of a definition for "living apart".
