Desmond A. Hanafin (9 September 1930 – 22 June 2017) was an Irish

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

politician who served for over 30 years as a member of

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

(1969–93 and 1997–2002). He opposed social liberalisation, particularly the legalisation of abortion, divorce and same-sex marriage, and was one of the founders of the anti-abortion advocacy group,

Pro Life Campaign Pro Life Campaign (PLC) is an Irish Opposition to the legalization of abortion, anti-abortion advocacy group, advocacy organisation. Its primary spokesperson is Cora Sherlock. It is a non-denominational organisation which promotes anti-abortion ...

Personal life

Hanafin was born in

Thurles Thurles (; ''Durlas Éile'') is a town in County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located in the civil parish of the same name in the barony of Eliogarty and in the ecclesiastical parish of Thurles. The cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Arch ...

County Tipperary County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...

, in 1930, son of John Hanafin (1890–1953), a draper and newsagent who served for many years as a

councillor for North Tipperary County Council and previously was a member of the

Irish Republican Brotherhood The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB; ) was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland between 1858 and 1924.McGee, p. 15. Its counterpart in the United States ...

and an elected

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

councillor. He married Mona Brady, daughter of J. P. Brady, on 28 August 1958 in

Clonmel Clonmel () is the county town and largest settlement of County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Cromwellian army which sacked the towns of Dro ...

, Tipperary. The wedding was followed by a reception at the Galtee Hotel,

Cahir Cahir (; ) is a town in County Tipperary in Ireland. It is also a civil parish in the barony of Iffa and Offa West. Location and access For much of the twentieth century, Cahir stood at an intersection of two busy national roadways: the Dubli ...

, which was attended by various notables including Rev. Father J. J. Hampson, President of

Blackrock College Blackrock College () is a voluntary day and boarding Catholic secondary school for boys aged 13–18, in Williamstown, Blackrock, County Dublin, Ireland. It was founded by French missionary Jules Leman in 1860 as a school and later became al ...

. Their first child, Mary Hanafin, was born in June 1959, followed by John Hanafin in September 1960. Mary Hanafin is a former Fianna Fáil TD and government minister, and John Hanafin is a former Fianna Fáil senator. Hanafin operated the Anner Hotel, located in Thurles during the 1960s. Initially successful, the business failed in 1967, which Mary Hanafin later blamed on her father's excess drinking. Subsequently, Hanafin was a director of the Transinternational Oil Company.

Political career

Hanafin's first attempt to be elected to public office proved unsuccessful. In 1953, Hanafin sought to be co-opted to fill the vacancy on North Tipperary County Council created by the death of his father, John Hanafin. In the event councillors co-opted a Labour Party nominee, Michael Treacy, by eleven votes to seven. He was elected a member of North Tipperary County Council in 1955, polling 934 first preference votes. Subsequently, in 1956, drawing support from the

Clann na Poblachta Clann na Poblachta (; "Family/Children of the Republic") was an Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed var ...

representatives, he was elected Chairman of the County Council. In 1957, he conducted a three-month tour of the United States, during which he was commissioned a

Kentucky colonel Kentucky Colonel is the highest title of honor bestowed by the US state of Kentucky. It is the most well-known colonelcy in the United States. A Kentucky Colonel Commission (the certificate) is awarded in the name of the Commonwealth by the go ...

, by then

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

Governor

Happy Chandler Albert Benjamin "Happy" Chandler Sr. (July 14, 1898 – June 15, 1991) was an American politician from Kentucky. He represented Kentucky in the U.S. Senate and served as its List of Governors of Kentucky, 44th and 49th governor. Aside from his ...

. He was also awarded the freedom of

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

, Kentucky, and received by Mayor

Richard J. Daley Richard Joseph Daley (May 15, 1902 – December 20, 1976) was an American politician who served as the mayor of Chicago from 1955, and the chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party from 1953, until his death. He has been called "the last of ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. Hanafin was re-elected to North Tipperary County Council in 1960, polling 797 first preference votes. In 1961, he voted against the Fianna Fáil nominee for Chair of the County Council, Thomas F. Meagher, and in favour of the Clann na Poblachta nominee, Michael F. Cronin, who was elected by 10 votes to 9. In 1964, he controversially voted in favour of Jeremiah Mockler, "a former school mate", who was elected by 10 votes to 9 to the office of Rate Collector for Borrisokane. He held the seat until 1985. He was first elected to

in 1969 and retained his seat until the 1993 Seanad election at which he lost his seat by one vote. He regained his seat in the 1997 elections, and in 2002 announced his retirement from politics. He unsuccessfully contested the

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

and

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

Dáil elections for the Tipperary North constituency. He was a chief fundraiser of the Fianna Fáil party for many years.

Social issues

Same-sex marriage

In May 2015, he accused Yes campaigners in the same-sex marriage referendum of spreading a "palpable climate of fear", and called for a No vote.

Divorce

He opposed the legalisation of

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganising of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the M ...

, which was introduced in 1995, and attempted to overturn the referendum result in the Supreme Court, but was refused by the court.

Abortion

An opponent of abortion, Hanafin was one of the promoters of the constitutional amendment that enshrined the legal ban on

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

in the

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland (, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executi ...

. He was co-founder, chairman and later honorary president of the

Death

On 22 June 2017, Hanafin died at the age of 86.

References