Since joining the European Community in 1973, the Republic of Ireland has accelerated its growth from a largely agricultural society into a modern, technologically advanced economy. But social matters such as divorce, the availability of contraception and abortion are still controversial as Ireland struggles to reconcile the demands of sophisticated urbanites with those of its traditional heartland.
Abortion is illegal under the Constitution in Ireland.
Latest figures show that around 6,000 Irish women travel to Britain each year for a termination of their pregnancies. Ireland has now dropped its territorial claim to British-ruled northern Ireland, where for decades a civil war was fought between those who want to remain British and those who want the territory to be merged with the southern republic. An Agreement for the future governance of northern Ireland is in the process of being implemented. For centuries Ireland's young citizens have emigrated to Britain, Europe or the US in search of jobs. This trend has begun to reverse.