I am delighted to be your guest here today to launch the 2011 Human Rights Commission Annual Report. I would like to thank the Commission for their kind invitation to be with you all today. I also welcome Judge Donal Barrington who is sharing the task of launching the report. I imagine for some of you today marks an “end of era”. While that is true to some extent, this is also a time of great opportunity which I hope you all share with me.
At this event last year I announced my intention to merge the Human Rights Commission and the Equality Authority. I consider this one of the most important initiatives I have undertaken as Minister for Justice and Equality. I have long been a vocal critic of the treatment of both the Commission and the Equality Authority by the previous Government. I have expressed grave concerns about the funding cuts placed on both organisations in the past and how they affected the sustainability of your role and work.
When I recently published the Heads of the Bill for the new Commission, I said that Irish society will benefit from having a strong and effective human rights and equality body. The new Commission will combine the strengths of both existing organisation. Its functions and powers will take from the best and most effective of those of the two existing organisations and will level them up to ensure that the new body is stronger and more effective that the sum of its constituent parts. I know there are friends and colleagues here from Northern Ireland. You are particularly welcome. An important dimension of the work of the new Commission will be to build on the existing strong working relations with the equivalent bodies in Northern Ireland both on the human rights and equality dimensions and we have made specific provision in the proposed new legislation to underpin this.
I want to place on record – again – my appreciation of the work carried out
by the Working Group I appointed last year to advice me on practical issues
in relation to the merger. Michael O Farrell, Lia O Hegarty, Helen O Neill
and Tom O Higgins from the Commission were on the Group. There were also
four people from the board of the Equality Authority (Betty O Leary, Peter
White, Kieran Rose and Ellen Mongan). Michael Whelan acted as independent
chair and there were two representatives and the Group’s Secretary from the
Department.
The Group took the task very seriously and produced a comprehensive report.
The Government accepted 100% of the Group’s recommendations insofar as they
relate to the provisions needed in the Bill to effect the merger. I am not
sure that there are many Working Groups – or many General Schemes of Bills
- about which that can be said. Of course, there is more to be done. In
terms of next steps, an important initial priority for the new Commission
will be to update a review of its staffing needs and to put together a
business case. This will have funding implications and it will not be easy
for me to deal with in the current fiscal environment, but I am committed
to giving it as favourable consideration as I possibly can. I have already
placed on record my view that the administrative savings that will accrue
to the new body from the merger should be retained by it to enhance its
core work capacity.
I will return to the process of establishing the new Irish Human Rights and
Equality Commission later in my address to you, but now I want to turn to
the specific reason we are here. Today we reflect on the work carried out
by the Commission last year. Again you have had a busy and productive
year. The Commission played an important role as part of Ireland’s
examination under the Universal Periodic Review.
This process is an important one in raising awareness of and standards in
relation to human rights on a global level and this, Ireland’s first review
under the UPR mechanism, was an extremely useful and constructive exercise
which gave us the opportunity to examine the overall situation of human
rights in Ireland.
One of the strengths of the process in Ireland was the wide participation
by civil society and NGOs which helped to make the process so meaningful
and constructive. The Commission engaged throughout with the Government and
assisted in many ways to raise awareness of the UPR mechanism.
The most important phase of this entire process is, of course, the
implementation of the commitments we, the Irish Government, have made. We
considered some recommendations to have already been implemented, while
other areas of implementation are underway, as I indicated at our review in
October. As we are all aware, the protection and promotion of human rights
requires continuous review and updating. As society evolves, so must our
response to the challenges and dangers to fundamental rights and freedoms.
I am sure the new Commission will be perfectly placed to keep these
commitments under review and ensure that there is no slippage in the
Government meeting its commitments. I look forward to being actively
monitored in that regard. When I published the General Scheme of the Irish
Human Rights and Equality Commission Bill recently, I said that our society
will benefit from having a strong and effective human rights and equality
body. Sunlight is the best antiseptic. Independent mechanisms that raise
awareness of important issues and problems and keep public bodies and
office holders – including members of Government – on our toes are an
important guarantor of the rights of citizens and of the quality of our
democracy.
I fully appreciate the importance and value of an impartial and robust
equality and human rights infrastructure. That is why when I launched the
General Scheme of the Bill earlier this month I yet again gave my
commitment on the issue of independence. The selection process for new
Commissioners will be objective and outside the influence of Government. I
am concerned that the new Commission should reflect a wide spectrum of
Irish society. This is, as you are aware, a requirement of the Paris
Principles. Equality and human rights are for everyone in society – they
are universal. No one sector of society has ownership of such rights but
they apply to everybody rich and poor, young and old, guilty and innocent.
This is how a modern democracy must function to ensure a fair and equitable
society for all.
Your report pays tribute to assistance you have received in a pro bono
capacity from members of the Bar. I also would like to add my voice to
this appreciation.
I want to take the opportunity to welcome the Commission’s publication of
its Observations on the Heads of the Irish Human Rights and Equality
Commission Bill. Public scrutiny of the General Scheme and in particular
the role of the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality to
whom I have referred the Heads are important in identifying areas for
improvement and in raising public awareness of the project we are embarked
upon. Lest there be any doubt on the matter, one of the primary purposes
of publishing the General Scheme, or the Heads, of the Bill is to expose it
to wider scrutiny and to get free access to so much of the expertise that
we have in this room and elsewhere so we can make it better.
I understand that the Commission had a very productive meeting with my
Department and colleagues from the Department of Foreign
Affairs and Trade
last Thursday in which some misunderstanding were cleared up and important
clarifications provided.
The process we are embarked upon is an important one for us as a society.
The primary purpose in having a Human Rights and Equality Commission is to
protect the rights of our own people at home and to improve human rights
and equality standards here. However, the merger is also important to the
international reputation of our State. We want the new Commission to be
accredited with ‘A’ status and we are seeking election to the UN Human
Rights Council. What we say and how we say it in our domestic Irish
discussions can have considerable impact on how we are perceived aboard. I
would hope that the Commission for its part can communicate some of those
important clarifications in an appropriate way to any and all appropriate
audiences.
At the meeting, my Department agreed that a number of specific
clarifications and technical amendments could usefully be made to the
Heads. I don’t want to take your time up with matters of detail, but I do
want to touch briefly on two of the most important sets of issues raised in
the Commission’s Observations.
We need to make a very clear distinction between independence on the one
hand and financial and audit accountability on the other. The independence
of the new Commission in the pursuit of its mandate is and will be
sacrosanct. The Heads – in particular the text dealing with the selection
of the new Commission, the enhanced range of powers and functions, direct
reporting to the Oireachtas and the overt reference to the Paris Principles
as the guiding inspiration - seek to establish this very clearly in law.
The suggestions in the Observations that this might be further strengthened
by an explicit statement that the Commission shall be independent in its
role and that by a more direct statement that individual Commissioners
shall be independent and not representatives of any specific organisation
or sector are sound.
The Paris Principles require that systems of financial control should not
compromise the independence of the national human rights institution.
Equally, however, the Principles expressly provide for the application of
the audit mechanisms that apply to public bodies generally to an NHRI.
There is an inalienable obligation on all of us to ensure that the various
systems in place are operated as they are intended to ensure that public
money is well spent and accounted for and that all corporate governance
obligations are fully adhered to. For public bodies, our system requires
that the body have in place its own financial management and audit
committee, be subject to periodic review of systems and processes by a
departmental internal audit service and to annual audit by the Comptroller
and Auditor General. These arrangements are not about control, but about
demonstrating compliance with all good corporate governance standards.
There is nothing to fear and the Commission’s position and reputation and
credibility is strengthened by showing that as a body with enforcement
powers, it complies fully with all that might be expected of it.
The second set of issues that I want to touch on relate to the powers and
functions of the new Commission. Everything we have said and published
stresses the objective of strengthening and enhancing the IHREC’s powers.
I understand that the Human Rights Commission is concerned that the
technical architecture of the General Scheme – specifically the
relationship between the range of functions provided for and the two
definitions of ‘human rights’ (the definition in Head 3 that relates to
rights in the broadest sense and the narrow definition in Head 30 for the
purpose of enforcement functions that relates only to rights that have the
force of law in the State) may inadvertently reduce the capacity of the
Commission to take needed action. I understand following last Thursday’s
meeting that the concern now only arises in relation to amicus curiae cases
and inquiries. In amicus curiae cases, it is common ground that a case
cannot come into being or be before a Court unless there is an allegation
of breach of law. So, there cannot be a case in which the Commission might
have an interest in assisting the Court unless the threshold of the
narrower definition has been crossed by the parties. The question is
whether the Commission, having crossed this threshold in the company of the
parties involved, would be prevented during the case from offering
assistance to the Court that draws on the wider definition. The intention
is that it would not be so restricted. So, either we clarify that the
technical architecture of the General Scheme does not have that effect, or
we fix it. That is a matter for legal advice.
In relation to inquiries, the General Scheme is based on the Department’s
understanding that it could never be permissible to conduct an inquiry
where there is no allegation or reasonable belief that a breach of
statutory duty has occurred (i.e. the narrower definition would have to be
satisfied), but that the Commission could consider best practice and
international standards in the course of the inquiry and in its conclusions
and recommendations (i.e. could in that regard draw from the wider
definition). That view is either right or wrong; it is also clearly a
point of substance for legal advice and if it is wrong we will fix it.
Back to today’s event. I want to acknowledge that 2011 saw the ending of
the mandate of the Human Rights Commission. Indeed some of you served a
total of 10 years in this role. For all of you I acknowledge your service.
I particularly want to acknowledge the leadership and selfless service
provided by your President, Dr. Maurice Manning. The experience which you
all brought to the Commission and your contribution in terms of time and
commitment was a vital element in ensuring that it fulfilled its
independent statutory role. You can be rightly proud of your work and
confident that your effort has advanced human rights not just here in
Ireland but also abroad.
I also want to pay tribute to Éamon Mac Aodha your former Chief Executive
who is now undertaking the important role as Ireland’s ambassador to
Belgium.
Finally I want to look to the future and in particular I wish to address
the staff of the Commission and the staff of the Equality Authority. The
last few months may have been a time of uncertainness and apprehension for
you all. I hope that now that with the publishing of the Working Group
Report and the General Scheme of the Bill we can all look to the future.
With a new Commission in place shortly I hope work can commence to l ensure
that your two organisations can start to operate as a cohesive unit.
Barak Obama has said that “Change will not come if we wait for some other
person or some other time. We are the ones
we've been waiting for. We are
the change that we seek.”
It will be the new Commission and its staff who will in many ways be the
instrument of change. I wish you well and ensure you of my and the
Government’s commitment and support on the road ahead.