UN council calls on Ireland to improve human rights protections

Minister Emer Higgins said that 'we are firmly committed to respecting, protecting and fulfilling human rights in Ireland'. File picture: Andres Poveda

Ireland has been urged to extend abortion rights, reduce homelessness, improve accommodation for asylum seekers, tackle hate crime, and increase human-trafficking detections during a session at the United Nations.

A delegation led by minister of state for disability, Emer Higgins, heard from members of the United Nations Human Rights Council on Tuesday, as part of a review of human rights protections. UN council members called for Ireland to tackle anti-Semitism, to protect children from exploitation, and to improve access to justice through better legal aid systems.

The UK called on Ireland to fully implement the action plan on racism, “including measurable targets, regular public reporting and enhanced measures to tackle racial discrimination, hate crime and anti-Semitism.”  It also called for the adoption of an updated anti-trafficking national strategy with “dedicated resources, enhanced supports for victims and improved detection and prosecution rates for trafficking offences”.

Turkey raised concerns about “anti-Muslim hate speech and discriminatory incidents such as the recent attacks on a number of mosques”.

In its examination, Sweden recommended that Ireland adopt legislative measures to “improve access to abortion services” and called for the removal of the mandatory three-day waiting period. This was echoed by several other countries.

During the session, the Palestinian representative thanked the Irish delegation for Ireland’s “longstanding solidarity” with the Palestinian people, adding that it commended “its recognition of the state of Palestine”.

South Africa also commended Ireland’s recognition of the Palestinian state.

The session comes just two months ahead of Ireland taking its seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council for two years in January.

Minister Emer Higgins pledged that Ireland will “continue to focus on delivering our commitments", saying that "we are firmly committed to respecting, protecting and fulfilling human rights in Ireland". 

She said human rights norms are under pressure in many parts of the world, adding: “It has never been more important for countries like Ireland to not only defend existing protections but to work with like-minded countries to support the international human rights architecture across the world.” 

She said that a bill in relation to the three-day wait for abortion is currently being debated in the Oireachtas. That bill was passed in the Dáil in June.

Human-trafficking

Ireland’s examination at the council came as the Catholic Primate Archbishop Eamon Martin described human-trafficking as one of the great scandals of the world today. He was speaking at the Act To Prevent Trafficking Ireland conference in Dublin on Tuesday.

Archbishop Martin said: “Human-trafficking reduces a person to a source of income, a transaction; a human being becomes ‘some thing’ to be used. All of us must recognise that women and children are most often the victims of human-trafficking, and this is why trafficking strikes at the very heart of our shared humanity.” 

Chief Commissioner at the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, Liam Herrick, said Ireland needs to ensure that “people who have been trafficked are recognised as victims and can access the protection and support they need". 

He added: "The effective implementation of Ireland's National Referral Mechanism is essential to ensuring that victims are identified, protected and supported, rather than left to navigate complex systems without the assistance they are entitled to.”