Human rights groups criticise cuts to funding

THE VICE-PRESIDENT of the European Court of Human Rights has said she was greatly disappointed by the heavy cuts in funding to the Equality Authority in Ireland.

Speaking at a conference on human rights in Dublin yesterday, Judge Elisabeth Palm, who was a member of the United Nations Human Rights Committee last year when Ireland reported to it, said the State had highlighted the role of the authority in its dialogue with the committee. The cuts, of 43 per cent, were made quite soon after the dialogue was finished, she said.

Her concern was echoed by Prof Michael O’Flaherty, a current member of the UN committee, who told the conference cuts in funding to the Equality Authority and to the Irish Human Rights Commission were scandalous.

The conference, Implementing Human Rights in a Time of Change, was chaired by Dr Maurice Hayes of the National Forum on Europe and organised by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, the Free Legal Aid Centres and the Irish Prison Reform Trust.

It examined the challenges facing Ireland under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The UN covenant was ratified by Ireland in 1989 and, under its conditions, countries are obliged to report on their progress on implementing the covenant to the UN Human Rights Committee.

The committee produced a report on Ireland’s record last July highlighting a number of issues of concern. These included the position of women in Ireland, including the continuing reference to the place of women “in the home” in the Constitution; the level of reported incidents of violence against women; and the problem of growing racist incidents against immigrants.

Judge Palm, who was the committee’s rapporteur for Ireland, said the country had made significant progress since it last reported. She noted the development of the Garda Ombudsman Commission, the Equality Authority and Equality Tribunal but said it was important they were supported with adequate resources.

“One would hope that the difficult economic situation that the world faces today will not impinge on the promotion of human rights,” she said. “To my great disappointment, I heard there was to be heavy cuts concerning the Equality Authority and other sectors of equality.”

The establishment of the authority was highlighted by Ireland during its dialogue with the committee, she said.

“I understand the cut was made quite soon after the dialogue had finished,” she added.

Judge Palm said there seemed to be many issues of concern, repeatedly raised by the committee, where there was little or no progress. These included the continuing existence of the special criminal courts and the “Travellers’ precarious conditions”. The committee had recommended Travellers be recognised as an ethnic minority group, but the Government has said it will not do so.

Mr O’Flaherty said the cut of 23 per cent in the budget of the Irish Human Rights Commission was nothing short of scandalous.

“To do what was done to the Equality Authority is beyond belief and so disproportionate in terms of the impact . . . that we’d have to use terms like scandal,” he said.

He said the country needed a national human rights plan of action.