Taoiseach Mícheál Martin has defended Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan's decision to have a controversial hugging consent video taken down, dismissing opposition criticism as a deliberate "political manoeuvre".
The social media video, produced by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) and funded by the Department of Justice, was removed on Thursday after drawing criticism. Mr O'Callaghan said his department had instructed the DRCC to remove the "inappropriate and demeaning" advertisement.
Taoiseach's defence
Speaking on Friday, Mr Martin backed his Fianna Fáil colleague, saying: "I don't believe the ad was appropriate at all. I think it was misfocused." He added: "I think it was inappropriate as an ad, clearly, and did cause offence to quite a number. But I don't think that was intentional."
The Taoiseach suggested that many grandparents would have been "taken aback" by the advertisement, and cautioned that "counter reactions gain momentum as a result of the situation." He also rejected claims that the Government was responsible for the video's content, stating: "Government is not responsible for agencies designing ads and so on."
Minister's statement
On Thursday, Mr O'Callaghan released a statement taking credit for the video's removal, saying: "The video produced by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre involving grandparents does not represent the views of the Government." He described it as "both inappropriate and demeaning to grandparents" and noted it had been removed following his officials' engagement with the DRCC.
However, Social Democrats justice spokesman Gary Gannon criticised the minister for creating a "pile-on" of the DRCC and setting a "dangerous precedent." He said: "It makes me deeply uncomfortable that the Minister for Justice has used his Twitter account to create an online pile-on of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre."
Campaign context
The video showed grandparents arriving at a home, where one child embraces them enthusiastically while another appears uncomfortable when the older woman approaches for a hug. Text on screen read: "Not everyone wants a hug. Even from the people who love them." The video and two others in the We-Consent campaign were removed after criticism.
Former justice minister Helen McEntee, who established Cuan, Ireland's statutory agency for domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, said the campaign's focus should have been on victims and survivors. She said: "I think it is absolutely essential that we have a very open and a very honest conversation on consent, particularly when the epidemic of domestic and sexual violence, sexual assault, it is still here."
The DRCC defended the video, stating it was based on feedback from over 20 consent workshops with younger and older people. A spokesperson said: "The scenarios depicted in the video series came up very frequently in all the workshops." They added that the centre does not want negativity to distract from its vital work in supporting victims and survivors.
