<P> Ireland ranks fifth in the world in terms of gender equality . In 2011, Ireland was ranked the most charitable country in Europe, and second most charitable in the world . Contraception was controlled in Ireland until 1979, however, the receding influence of the Catholic Church has led to an increasingly secularised society . In 1983, the Eighth Amendment recognised "the right to life of the unborn", subject to qualifications concerning the "equal right to life" of the mother . The case of Attorney General v. X subsequently prompted passage of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, guaranteeing the right to have an abortion performed abroad, and the right to learn about "services" that are illegal in Ireland but legal abroad . The prohibition on divorce in the 1937 Constitution was repealed in 1995 under the Fifteenth Amendment . Divorce rates in Ireland are very low compared to European Union averages (0.7 divorced people per 1,000 population in 2011) while the marriage rate in Ireland is slightly above the European Union average (4.6 marriages per 1,000 population per year in 2012). </P> <P> Capital punishment is constitutionally banned in Ireland, while discrimination based on age, gender, sexual orientation, marital or familial status, religion, race or membership of the travelling community is illegal . The legislation which outlawed homosexual acts was repealed in 1993 . In 2010, the Dáil and the Seanad passed the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act, which recognised civil partnerships between same - sex couples . It permits same - sex couples to register their relationship before a registrar . A Sunday Times poll carried out in March 2011 showed that 73% of people believe that same - sex couples should be allowed to marry, while 60% believe that same - sex couples should be allowed to adopt children . In April 2012, the Constitutional Convention voted overwhelmingly in favour of extending marriage rights to same - sex couples . On 23 May 2015, Ireland became the first country to legalise same - sex marriage by popular vote . </P> <P> Ireland became the first country in the world to introduce an environmental levy for plastic shopping bags in 2002 and a public smoking ban in 2004 . Recycling in Ireland is carried out extensively, and Ireland has the second highest rate of packaging recycling in the European Union . It was the first country in Europe to ban incandescent lightbulbs in 2008 and the first EU country to ban in - store tobacco advertising and product display in 2009 . In 2015 Ireland became the second country in the world to introduce plain cigarette packaging . Despite the above measures to discourage tobacco use, smoking rates in Ireland remain above 20% of the adult population and above those in other developed countries . </P> <P> The state shares many symbols with the island of Ireland . These include the colours green and blue, animals such as the Irish wolfhound and stags, structures such as round towers and celtic crosses, and designs such as Celtic knots and spirals . The shamrock, a type of clover, has been a national symbol of Ireland since the 17th century when it became customary to wear it as a symbol on St. Patrick's Day . These symbols are used by state institutions as well as private bodies in the Republic of Ireland . </P>

Which part of ireland is part of eu