Human Rights

The Alliance Party was one of the three parties that responded to the Joint Committee. We’ve included some of the highlights here. Please note the European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003 passed into law in the Republic earlier this year. It has a particularly interesting tack on the issue of sovereignty.Submission from Dr Stephen Farry, Justice Spokesman, to the Joint Committee – August 2003 Alliance warmly endorses the concept of a Charter of Rights for the island of Ireland …

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The following is a condensed summary of some of the main points from Saturday’s seminar in Cork. It contains four questions that I thought might useful to address in the comments. It would be useful if you could structure your contributions around them.There’s degree of sensitivity around establishing a bilateral charter. Rachel Murray from the University of Bristol emphasised that the two commissions had an option to say no, and they shouldn’t shirk from recommending no further action. Any future …

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Interesting piece from Madsen Pirie at the Adam Smith Institute, who argues that European social and economic rights legislation has led to higher levels of unemployment, more comprehensive use of robots and consequently higher levels of production. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty

Brice Dickson was a key speaker at the Seminar in Cork on Saturday. His presentation looked at three things: lessons to be learned from the Bill of Rights debate in Northern Ireland; what quality of relationship might exist between a future charter and a future Bill of Rights; and some concluding thoughts on the challenges it might throw up. He was speaking in a purely personal capacity, and no way reflects the official thinking of the Human Rights Commission. Note: …

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Chris Stalford picks up on a theme that has so far not raised its head in the E-debate on a Charter of Rights e-debate: the issue of overly prescriptive legislation. He’s fearful that under a full and rigourous rights culture some political attitudes are likely to be considered more right than others.By Christopher Stalford Question: when is a prisoner of conscience not a prisoner of conscience? Answer: when he or she makes a statement that offends the cosy liberal consensus. …

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Steven King argues (archive only) that the Human Rights Commission’s proposals for a new Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland are the result of a consensus between a particularly narrow range of interests. Note: This is a re-post from the lost archives of Slugger from last April. He concludes: “Never forget the old advice that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Human rights are crucially important. But the notion of human rights is devalued if …

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Colin Harvey with the third of his pieces, asks the question what rights might a future charter contain. We’ve already had the suggestion from reader Alan that those of children and the disabled might be useful additions. Donaloc has anticipated the issue by pasting Sinn Fein’s extensive list of rights suggested in its discussion document.Ø Which rights should it contain? Before deciding on which rights it should contain there must be a clear idea of the context and what the …

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The e-debate has been slow to start, but there’s been some interesting questions that have arisen out of the first few days of discussion. Here’s a short outline of some of the main points so far. Colin Harvey will have more questions tomorrow.The discussion so far has raised more questions than answers. The primary one being whether we really need an all island charter when, in theory at least, the European Convention on Human Rights already covers both parts of …

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Brice Dickson wrote a think piece (pdf) for the Irish Law Society last autumn when an initial public consultation was still in train. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty

We’ve had a few good starters to the e-debate, raising questions about the precise nature of any proposed instrument. There is some scepticism over the workablity/desirablity of an enforceable document. Over the next fortnight we’ll be examining four general questions, which will help frame the discussions to be initiated at the Seminar in UCC this Saturday. And, in turn, we’ll be bringing you informed perspectives that arise from the seminar next week.From Colin Harvey Ø What does the Agreement prescribe …

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Indian Express journalist with a very Indian take on the whole question of Rights and Responsibilities, managing to bring Ghandi and the Bhagawad Gita (‘Your duty is your right’)in the first paragraph. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty

Professor Colin Harvey sets out the ideas behind the Charter of Right e-debate and provides the background to the idea for a charter. And asks some basic questions that the e-debate will seek answers to.By Colin Harvey The Belfast Agreement contains a clear commitment to human rights. Human rights protection remains a fundamental pillar of the peace process. And all-Ireland human rights measures are, or should be, part of this process. The Agreement led to the creation of two human …

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Discussion about the restoration of democratic institutions in Northern Ireland continues to rage around issues of demilitarisation, policing, security and accountability – all part of the current review of the Belfast Agreement.But that Agreement also commits to looking at “the possibility of establishing a charter, open to signature by all democratic political parties, reflecting and endorsing agreed measures for the protection of the fundamental rights of everyone living in the island of Ireland”. Until now there has been little progress. …

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As a warmer for tomorrow’s Charter of Rights e-debate, David Aaronvitch with an argument that the UN Declaration is too blunt an instrument to deal with the sensitivities of various religious groupings. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty

Next Tuesday we begin a two week online debate designed to explore the possibility of establishing an island-wide Charter of Rights, as suggested in the Belfast Agreement. And you don’t have to be coralled on the inside of an English castle to take part!It’s jointly sponsored by University College Cork, University of Leeds and the British Council in Dublin. It straddles a real time seminar in Cork on Saturday 2nd October. In the meantime, I’m in Dublin tomorrow, so blogging …

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