EPO 362 facts for kids

Emergency Powers (No. 362) Order 1945 or EPO 362 was an important rule made by the Irish government. It was created after World War II ended, even though Ireland stayed neutral during the war. This rule affected members of the Irish Defence Forces who had left their posts without permission, a act known as desertion.

The order took away certain benefits from these soldiers. They lost their right to a pension and unemployment benefits they had earned before leaving. It also stopped them from working in any government job for seven years. Most of these soldiers had left the Irish army to join the armed forces of other countries, especially the Allied forces like the British Armed Forces.

Why Was the EPO 362 Order Made?

The EPO 362 order was put in place on August 8, 1945. Éamon de Valera, who was the Taoiseach (Ireland's prime minister) at the time, made the order. He used special powers given to the government by the Emergency Powers Act 1939. This law was passed when World War II first started.

The order was stopped on August 1, 1946. However, its effects continued through another law called the Defence Forces (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1946.

Goals of the Order

Historians suggest a few reasons why this order was made:

• To show appreciation for soldiers who stayed in the Irish Defence Forces.
• To stop other soldiers from leaving the army in the future.
• To allow soldiers who had deserted to come back to Ireland without facing a full court-martial (a military trial).
• To offer a simpler and cheaper way to deal with desertion than holding many court-martials.

A list of all the people affected by this order was kept by the government. This list was made public in 2011.

Public Reaction to the Order

On October 18, 1945, a politician named Thomas F. O'Higgins tried to get the order cancelled in the Dáil Éireann (the Irish parliament). He called it the starvation order because it caused so much hardship for the affected soldiers and their families.

Another politician, Richard Mulcahy, pointed out that the order only applied to regular soldiers, not to officers. However, the motion to cancel the order was defeated. This means the order stayed in place.

News about this debate reached other countries. Some people in the Irish government were worried that it made Ireland look bad. They felt it made a normal army rule seem like a harsh political punishment.

Later Amnesty for Deserted Soldiers

In the 2000s, a campaign began to get a pardon for the soldiers who had left the Irish army to join the Allied forces.

In 2013, a new law was passed called the Defence Forces (Second World War Amnesty and Immunity) Act. This law gave an amnesty to these soldiers. An amnesty is like a general forgiveness for a group of people, rather than a pardon for just one person.

This amnesty covered about 4,634 people who were affected by the 1945 order or the 1946 law. It also included about 2,500 other soldiers who had faced court-martials or other legal action.

Some historians believe it's important to study why these soldiers deserted. They note that more soldiers left the army in areas close to the Irish border.