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Harassment

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  • 19-08-2006 2:09pm
    #1
    Jak O Shadows
    Registered Users Posts: 66 ✭✭


    Hi all, just a quick question.

    Is harassment a crime in Ireland and if so what constitutes harassment?

    thanks


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    #2
    Darragh29
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,097 ✭✭✭Darragh29


    Jak O Shadows wrote:
    Hi all, just a quick question.

    Is harassment a crime in Ireland and if so what constitutes harassment?

    thanks

    Sexual harassment in the workplace is a crime in Ireland, outlawed under the provisions of section 23 of The Employment Equality Act, 1998. Harassment in the more general sense is also a crime under the provisions of section 10 of The Non Fatal Offences Against The Person Act, 1997. This act seems to best cover your question. Section 10 of the act states:

    (1) Any person who, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, by any means including by use of the telephone, harasses another by persistently following, watching, pestering, besetting or communicating with him or her, shall be guilty of an offence.

    (2) For the purposes of this section a person harasses another where—

    (a) he or she, by his or her acts intentionally or recklessly, seriously interferes with the other's peace and privacy or causes alarm, distress or harm to the other, and

    (b) his or her acts are such that a reasonable person would realise that the acts would seriously interfere with the other's peace and privacy or cause alarm, distress or harm to the other.

    If what you are experencing can be reconciled with the above definitions at (2)(a) or (2)(b), then you have a statable case of harassment and you can go to your Garda station and make a formal complaint.


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    #3
    Jak O Shadows
    Registered Users Posts: 66 ✭✭Jak O Shadows


    Thanks for that, it was general harassment I was enquiring about, but surely that would be very hard to proove.


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    #4
    Darragh29
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,097 ✭✭✭Darragh29


    Jak O Shadows wrote:
    Thanks for that, it was general harassment I was enquiring about, but surely that would be very hard to proove.

    Well thats the other element of the matter, proof. If you are in the middle of a large field with someone and they are threatening you and clearly harassing you, you could see how you would have difficulty proving this.

    If on the other hand you are outside your house talking to two of your neighbours and someone comes up and does the same, you are in a different position here.

    Usually the Gardai will look for a witness or some evidence that can support your complaint. If you can provide either, the Gardai will investigate the matter and may just issue a caution or else procced to prosecute, depending on the actions of the person who is the subject of your complaint, (also depends on the actual Garda who you are dealing with a lot of the time!).


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