All new laws should be properly assessed to make sure they are "human rights-proofed", the Irish Human Rights Commission urged today.
Publishing its second strategic plan since its establishment in 2001, the IHRC asked the Government to look again at the proposal it said it had previously put to it. It also asked that, as a body, it be made directly accountable to the Oireachtas.
Human rights commissioner Lia O'Hegarty
President of the IHRC Maurice Manning said: "It is important that all political parties and Oireachtas committees engage in early and structured dialogue with the Commission, and we would ask the Government to look again at a proposal we put to it - that just as all legislation is finance-proofed and gender-proofed at the outset, it should also be human rights-proofed."
"We also ask, because of the overarching and universal nature of human rights and our remit that we, the commission, be directly accountable to the Oireachtas rather than simply to one department. This is an issue we will pursue - and which we believe will be welcomed."
Dr Manning was speaking at Dublin Castle to mark the publication of the strategic plan, entitled Promoting and Protecting Human Rights in Ireland, which runs from 2007 to 2011.
He said the central focus of the document was to promote a culture and ethos of respect for human rights in Ireland.
"Economic progress has contributed to increased well-being and a growing diversity of people enriching our society. However not everyone has benefited equally, and the Celtic Tiger has brought with it new human rights challenges as well as entrenching old ones," he said.
"The commission will focus on how human rights laws and principles can address inequalities and injustice in our society and promote inclusiveness and respect for diversity."
Human rights commissioner Lia O'Hegarty said that if a culture of human rights was to be achieved in Ireland, then human rights must be a core consideration in the formulation of law, public policy and justice.
"A culture of human rights is ensuring that people know that human rights belong to everyone, that they know what those rights are and that they are able to realise their rights. Potential challenges to human rights emanate from various sources and the Commission is required to be increasingly vigilant in this regard."
"Though it is difficult to anticipate the precise nature of issues which could have future human rights implications, the commission has an important role to play in considering emerging issues," she said.
Under the Human Rights Commission Act 2000 the Commission is empowered to promote and protect human rights as they are defined both in the 1937 Constitution and in international agreements to which Ireland is a party.