Editing Blasphemous libel (section)

==Republic of Ireland==
{{main|Blasphemy law in the Republic of Ireland}}
In the [[Republic of Ireland]], §13 of the Defamation Act, 1961 prescribed penalties for blasphemous libel, but did not define the offence.<ref>[http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1961/en/act/pub/0040/sec0013.html#zza40y1961s13 Defamation Act, 1961, Section 13] Irish statute book</ref> The only attempted prosecution since the [[Constitution of Ireland|1937 Constitution]] was in 1999; the [[Supreme Court of Ireland|Supreme Court]] ruled that the Constitution had extinguished the common law offence of blasphemous libel, since when "it is impossible to say of what the offence of blasphemy consists".<ref>{{cite BAILII |court=IESC |year=1999 |num=5 |parallelcite=[1999] 4 IR 485, [2000] 1 ILRM 426 |litigants=Corway v Independent Newspapers (Ireland) Limited}}</ref> The Defamation Act 2009 defines a new offence of "Publication or utterance of blasphemous matter",<ref>[http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2009/en/act/pub/0031/sec0036.html Defamation Act 2009, Section 36] Irish statute book</ref> which was held to be required by Article 40.6.1.i. of the Constitution, which states "The publication or utterance of blasphemous, seditious or indecent matter is an offence which shall be punishable in accordance with law".<ref>Dermot Ahern (20 May 2009), [http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/JELR/Pages/Amending%20the%20Law%20on%20Blasphemous%20Libel%20Speech%20by%20the%20Mr.%20Dermot%20Ahern%20T.D.,%20Minister%20for%20Justice,%20Equality%20and%20Law%20Reform%20at%20the%20Dail%20Committee%20on%20Justice,%20Equality%20Defence%20and%20Women%27s%20Rights%20Wednesday,%2020th%20May,%202009 "Amending the Law on Blasphemous Libel"]. Dáil Committee on Justice, Equality Defence and Women's Rights</ref><ref>{{cite news
  | title = Irish law makes it illegal to speak blasphemy
  | last = Tang
  | first = Colleen
  | date = 21 July 2009
  | publisher = CBC News
  | url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/irish-law-makes-it-illegal-to-speak-blasphemy-1.826403
  | accessdate = 23 July 2009}}</ref> The [[Thirty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland|37th amendment]] subsequently deleted "blasphemous" from the constitution.