Born: April 14th, 1951
Died: July 16th, 2024
When it comes to campaigning for human rights, Justin Kilcullen must be one of the first Irishmen to spring to mind. A quiet board member of many organisations, he never courted attention, unless it had an endgame of highlighting the circumstances of deprived millions around the world.
Born in Mount Merrion, Co Dublin to Michael Kilcullen and Máire (Egan), his education in Oatlands Christian Brothers School, Stillorgan, was followed in 1975 by a degree in architecture from University College Dublin. This degree quickly translated to work on countless projects in Asia and in Africa where, inspired by his two Jesuit missionary uncles, he started his volunteer overseas work in Tanzania, staying for two years.
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He later designed camps for Cambodian boat people and Vietnamese refugees along the Thai-Cambodian border, which included the Khao-I-Dang (KID) camp of 150,000 refugees from the Cambodian-Vietnamese war, working with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). In 2002, he was awarded the Robert Matthew medal by the International Union of Architects for his work on human settlements.
He was an architect of buildings, and also of campaigns.
Instead of starting his planned commercial architecture practice in Dublin, he worked for a year in Belfast with the Voluntary Housing Association movement on the refurbishment of inner-city housing on the Falls and Shankill Roads.
He joined Trócaire in 1981 as Africa programme officer, and later for four years served as its representative in Laos. His appointment to the role of executive director from 1993 was considered by many to be a brilliant choice, and he continued until his retirement in 2013. He spent extensive time visiting countries to give practical support and advice. A man of integrity, he embodied trócaire, the Irish word for compassion.
Sister Nora McNamara of the Holy Rosary Sisters worked in Nigeria in the late 1970s and 1980s, involved in setting up on-farm research and small business projects to generate financial freedom for women. She was solidly supported by Kilcullen, who went against the grain and got her to the table at traditionally male-dominated meetings in Nigeria, later ensuring that many other Nigerian women had their say. She describes him as “a traditional Irish family man who was avant-garde at the same time. He was a true feminist. He was mighty. Prophetic.”
Colette Nkunda, who fled the terrors of Rwanda, was highly traumatised by her experiences. Her plight, but also her talents, were recognised by Kilcullen who encouraged her to apply for a post in Trócaire. While not executive director at the time, his influence meant that not only a woman, but a black woman, was appointed to the Trócaire staff. While that may not seem unusual in 2024, in 1995 it made history. She became programme officer, managing the budget for a project in Rwanda to which she was well suited. “Trócaire became my family. Justin’s kindness helped me personally, and with his vision, fairness and humanity, helped my people.”
His approach to helping the disadvantaged, while often courageous, was sensitive to the traditions and social mores of those countries. Nothing was done in a hurry. He had a well-considered, holistic approach, seeking clarity, delivering what were often quite simple solutions to problems. He would stay in the background, quietly advising, not driven by ego, and always respectful.
When in 2007 he stood as a Labour Party candidate for Glencullen, it was with the aim of increasing awareness of Comhlámh, to which he had an unstinting commitment as an organisation involved in social justice. He may not have reached the electoral quota, but that didn’t bother him; he was satisfied with the Comhlámh awareness quota. In 2019, he was awarded a papal knighthood of the Order of St Gregory the Great for people of distinguished character, reputation and accomplishment on behalf of the Catholic Church and society, regardless of their religious affiliation.
Caoimhe de Barra, current chief executive of Trócaire, said “Justin had a passion for justice and a deep belief in the dignity and rights of every human being which drove and defined him.”
President Michael D Higgins, who attended the funeral, shared his thoughts: “It was a privilege to know and to work with Justin on the projects of Trócaire, with its special emphasis on not only identifying human need, but of asking the structural questions as to how injustice repeats itself.”
Involved in many organisations in Ireland and abroad, he was chairperson and co-founder of Shankill Action for a Green Earth (Sage), an ecumenical community initiative to counter climate change; he was a member of the National Famine Commemoration Committee. He was a past president of CIDSE – an international alliance of Catholic development organisations in Europe and North America – and of Concord, the 1,600-strong confederation of European development NGOs. As co-chair and later special advisor to the Civil Society Partnership for Development Effectiveness, he also supported the UNDP/OECD Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation. He was chair of Misean Cara, the Catholic organisation supporting missionaries involved in development work. Speaking at the International Eucharistic Congress 2012 in Dublin, he reflected on what drew him to join Trócaire in 1981. “Global poverty will never be overcome when there is wealth for some and poverty for the rest.”
He served as a board member of Sadaka, the Ireland Palestine Alliance, and was a board member and the former chair of Social Justice Ireland. The RTÉ broadcast he made for the radio programme Sunday Miscellany describes a visit he made to the Gaza Strip in June 2010 on behalf of Trócaire. A temporary ceasefire was in place at the time, and he described his “surreal experience” witnessing “an enclave of 2 million people crammed into a space less than half the area of Co Louth . . . where 70 per cent of the population was partially or fully dependent on humanitarian relief and the unemployment rate was over 50 per cent”. He must have felt utter dismay that the hope he had 14 years ago for some improvement in their plight was shattered by recent events in that area.
His wife Róisín, a nurse, accompanied him on many projects. They were well matched and she shared her husband’s quiet determination to be effective in helping to restore the dignity and rights of people in countries suffering deprivation.
He is survived by Róisín, daughter Ruth, sons Eoin and Michael, daughter-in-law Laura, grandchildren Alice and Cian, and siblings Jean and Paul.