http://www.billofrightsni.org/news/ en louise@billofrightsni.org Copyright 2011 2011-11-15T16:57:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/the_time_is_right_new_poll_leaves_no_doubt_of_mandate_for_bill_of_rights_ac/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/the_time_is_right_new_poll_leaves_no_doubt_of_mandate_for_bill_of_rights_ac/#When:16:57:00Z Yesterday saw the launch of our new publication ‘Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland: OVERDUE!’. An enthusiastic gathering of members of the Human Rights Consortium and supporters of the Bill of Rights made our way to Stormont as new findings were revealed showing that the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland – 83%, consider the Bill of Rights important.  What is even more noteworthy is that when this support is broken down into political party support there is no statistical difference between all main parties here – ranging from 88% (Sinn Fein) to 81% (Alliance).  Civil society was joined by MLAs, Ministers and representatives from the British, Irish and US governments. The event received all executive party support with one of the sponsors – Sammy Douglas DUP MLA for East Belfast introducing the event.  He spoke of the importance of the human rights work in his community, and commended the grassroots work of the Consortium and the Lower Castlereagh Community Group within East Belfast.  Caitriona Ruane MLA, Sinn Fein’s human rights spokesperson, followed this by reaffirming her party’s belief in the importance of a specific Bill of Rights for this jurisdiction and their commitment to working with Assembly colleagues to make this a reality.  Three individuals from HRC member organisations spoke passionately about how a Bill of Rights would benefit the people they represent.  Bobby Cosgrove, founder and Chair of East Belfast Survivors of Suicide spoke about the lack of support for families bereaved from suicide and individuals at risk.  Elaine Hampton from Disabled Police Officers Association spoke about the inadequate services available for her service users with disabilities – both mental and physical, and how protections for people with disabilities should be included in the Bill of Rights for NI.  Gary McAreevey, a former service user and now a volunteer for Integrated Services for Children and Young People shared his experience of alternative education and connected this to the right of all children and young people to education, a right which he believed should protected in a local rights framework. Attendees were moved to respond; SDLP human rights spokesperson Colum Eastwood MLA pledged his party’s support and called for an end to any delay in implementing the Bill of Rights.  Chairman of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement Dominic Hannigan stated: “The Bill of Rights is one of the outstanding issues of the Good Friday Agreement and we all must work towards progress on this. We must ensure that the Bill of Rights is implemented.  I look forward to bringing this up at future committee meetings and in discussions with the different parties and groups involved on how we can move this issue forward so that the will of the people is made a reality.” Speaking at the launch Campaigns Manager Sorcha McKenna said; “While there may be a sense that the Bill of Rights debate has gone away this is clearly not the case with more and more people from all communities, backgrounds and age groups engaging in grassroots human rights work. These are people suffering from the legacy of the conflict and the increased cuts who see a real need for their rights to be protected – now more than ever.” Click here to view the publication. 2011-11-15T16:57:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/uup_party_conference_2011/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/uup_party_conference_2011/#When:12:40:00Z The Human Rights Consortium was represented by Chairperson Fiona McCausland and representative Helen Flynn at the UUP’s annual Party Conference in the Armagh City Hotel on Saturday 22nd October 2011. We had a great day, with a really prominent position. Before the Conference even started we got the chance to chat to Danny Kennedy, Minister for Regional Development, about the progress of the Bill of Rights. Sir Reg Empey, Basil McCrea and Mike Nesbitt also stopped by, and we were able to supply them with our handout on ‘The UUP and the Bill of Rights Process’ as well as some literature our members had provided. The highlight of the day though was Fiona engaging in conversation with Party Leader Tom Elliot and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Owen Patterson on the Bill of Rights and the next steps. We had some great discussions also with party members who were very impressed with our polling data which showed that 83% of Protestants are in favour of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. All in all it was a great day! 2011-11-01T12:40:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/uup_party_conference_20111/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/uup_party_conference_20111/#When:12:40:00Z The Human Rights Consortium was represented by Chairperson Fiona McCausland and representative Helen Flynn at the UUP’s annual Party Conference in the Armagh City Hotel on Saturday 22nd October 2011. We had a great day, with a really prominent position. Before the Conference even started we got the chance to chat to Danny Kennedy, Minister for Regional Development, about the progress of the Bill of Rights. Sir Reg Empey, Basil McCrea and Mike Nesbitt also stopped by, and we were able to supply them with our handout on ‘The UUP and the Bill of Rights Process’ as well as some literature our members had provided. The highlight of the day though was Fiona engaging in conversation with Party Leader Tom Elliot and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Owen Patterson on the Bill of Rights and the next steps. We had some great discussions also with party members who were very impressed with our polling data which showed that 83% of Protestants are in favour of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. All in all it was a great day! Northern Ireland Secretary of State Owen Patterson, UUP Party Leader Tom Elliot and HRC Chairperson Fiona McCausland discuss the Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland at the 2011 UUP Party Conference For more photos of the day click here 2011-11-01T12:40:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/human_rights_and_the_sinn_fein_ard_fheis/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/human_rights_and_the_sinn_fein_ard_fheis/#When:15:09:00Z Friday 9th September kicked off the party conference season with an historic move by Sinn Fein who held their first Ard Fheis in Belfast. Security was high throughout the day and a half event held at the Waterfront Hall with thousands of people milling through the venue. This was the first year that stalls were allowed and the Consortium enjoyed a prime position at the top of the staircase between the auditorium doors and the bar. We were visited over the course of the event by a thousands of delegates, observers, Sinn Fein members and elected representatives from both Northern and South of the border. Visitors were treated to an array of literature on the Bill of Rights including party specific briefing papers in an effort to win support for motion 164; This Ard Fheis calls for the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement provisions with respect to both a Bill of Rights for the Six Counties and equivalent human rights protections in the 26 Counties and for the adoption of an all-island Charter of Rights reflecting the agreed measures for the protection of the fundamental rights of everyone.  This Ard Fheis supports the enshrinement of legally enforceable social and economic rights in these protections. By the time the motion was raised at 6pm on Saturday there was little doubt that it would pass as the rhetoric of rights had found its way through a large number of plenary speeches. Most notably in the televised plenary session Junior Minister Martin Anderson MLA delivered and impassioned plea (see below) on the need for dignity to be protected and called for the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement in particular the Bill of Rights and Charter of Rights. A chairde we are told that one of the main objections to a right to dignity is because dignity is hard to define; yet indignity - is easy to recognise. I want to tell you about an Older Person who suffered a stroke and a bowl condition. Due to her physical frailty, she’s had a number of falls while accessing the toilet, sometimes resulting in hospitalization, yet she did not receive an adequate care package. Even though she was not incontinent, she was told to use incontinence pads meaning she would sit in her own urine and faeces for at times 12 hours a night. Most people would recognise this situation as an assault on her dignity, yet her experience is not unique. Human dignity is harmed when individuals are devalued, marginalized or ignored. However, we can advance it by enhancing laws that recognize the full place of all individuals and groups within society. And that is why for SF it’s important that the GFA is fully implemented and that the commitment for a Bill of Rights and enhanced Human Rights protections in the South are advanced. Without doubt after the exposure of the deficiencies in Irish Law and Practice around child protection, people want and need the right to dignity promoted and Human Rights enhanced. In the North SF Ministers are driving the Equality and Human Rights Agendas forward: Education Minister SF’s John O Dowd works to protects and develops the most important people in our society – our children; Culture, Arts and Leisure Minister SF’s Carol NiChuilin values all cultures and languages & promotes initiatives like Iiofa 2015; whilst Agriculture and Rural Development Minister SF’s Michelle O’Neill is tackling rural poverty and making advances on the All Ireland agenda; And Martin McGuinness and I are using the office of the joint first Ministers to work towards advancing the needs of Older People, our children and young people, and of course working to help Victims and Survivors of historical institutional abuse and clerical abuse, as well as Victims and Survivors of the conflict. We can all recognize indignity, and we in SF have the spirit and confidence to play our part in building a society where it is confronted, challenged and eradicated. SF has the energy to drive that forward, so why not join us and work with us to make it happen sooner. With cross community support for a Bill of Rights standing at 83% the Consortium will work to ensure that the Bill of Rights receives a high profile at the remaining party conferences in an effort to translate the cross community into cross party support and progress the Bill of Rights which the people of Northern Ireland have been waiting 13 years for. 2011-09-12T15:09:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/congratulations_ace/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/congratulations_ace/#When:15:21:00Z Ace Gray, a 15 year old girl from the Lower Castlereagh area of East Belfast, was awarded a four day internship with the Human Rights Consortium as a result of winning a letter-writing competition at a workshop run by the Lower Castlereagh Community Group and the Human Rights Consortium.  Her letter was addressed to her local MLA Sammy Douglas and in it she told him what she wanted to see in a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland.  Ace kept a diary of her time at the Consortium and the member organisations that she visited.  My internship at the Human Rights Consortium On Monday we visited The Rainbow Project.  The Rainbow Project is a project that helps gay, bisexual, and non-heterosexual men to improve their physical, mental and emotional health. Lynda (the Campaign and Communications Assistant at the Consortium) and I went to hear some interesting facts and stories about the organisation and what they do. I found this information very useful and interesting as I found out a lot of new things about The Rainbow Project. I enjoyed my trip to The Rainbow Project and hope that I will have the chance to do this again. On Tuesday morning I attended a meeting in NUS/USI to talk about how the Human Rights Consortium and NUS/USI can work together.  I fairly enjoyed this meeting and was very interested in it because I am hoping to one day go to university and would like to be involved in something like this. It is a very good group that does a lot of thing for the students at university and college. On Tuesday afternoon I got the pleasure to attend a steering group meeting; it was based around the MERGE project delivered by Dance United NI in partnership with Belfast Unemployed Resource Centre. I found it interesting because the project was based around young people my age, it was about giving lots of different people with different talents the opportunity that they need.  It was for contemporary dance, urban/street dance, bmx bikes, opera singing, rap, skate boarding or visual arts; I think it is a very good project and hope that it is successful. On Wednesday the Human Rights Consortium held an event for all the members to attend, it was very interesting to hear exactly what they do and why they do it, I think that having a bill of rights for Northern Ireland is very important. The Human Rights Consortium are working towards and campaigning to make this happen. Naomi Long attended in the afternoon to give a talk, I think this is good because local MPs should be interacting with their community, and making an effort to help. On Thursday afternoon we visited the Northern Ireland Council for Ethnic Minorities (NICEM) and talked with their Communication Officer about the work that NICEM does – providing services for people from ethnic minorities and lobbying for a change in policy and the law.  Fran then brought us to the Northern Ireland Community of Refugees and Asylum Seekers (NICRAS) where we heard about the terrible situation many refugees and asylum seekers face when coming to our country and the help that NICRAS provides to them.  This was one of the most enjoyable parts of my internship. Over all I enjoyed my time and experience here at the Human Rights Consortium, I think it has given me lots of new and fun opportunities and will benefit me in the future; maybe one day I will have a job similar to this as it was very enjoyable to be a part of, and I think it would be a good career to pursue. 2011-08-26T15:21:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/back_to_basics_on_the_bill_of_rights/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/back_to_basics_on_the_bill_of_rights/#When:16:14:00Z The Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland Wednesday 24th August 2011 10am - 3pm Unison, York Street, Belfast Members of the Human Rights Consortium are invited to an event on the Bill of Rights – past, present and future. This is a chance for new members to learn about the debate or for existing members to refresh themselves on the Consortium’s key messages. We hope to build capacity among members to engage effectively in the Bill of Rights debate, have a clear understanding of the role of the Consortium, and to share their ideas on future campaigning. Tea/coffee will be served from 9.30am and lunch will be provided. After this we will hold our regular members meeting at 1pm which all members are invited to attend. The meeting will begin with a keynote speech by Naomi Long MP who will speak on Westminster and Assembly engagement.  We will conclude with business by 3pm. Please RSVP to info@billofrightsni.org or call 028 90313780. Non-Members If your organisation is not yet a member of the Human Rights Consortium but would be interested in joining please contact Lynda at lynda@billofrightsni.org or at the number above.  2011-08-22T16:14:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/east_belfast_has_the_rights_idea/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/east_belfast_has_the_rights_idea/#When:12:45:00Z Young people from East Belfast were involved in a groundbreaking initiative to bring human rights into the heart of their community yesterday. The Lower Castlereagh Community Group, as part of their Summer Scheme programme invited the Human Rights Consortium to host an afternoon of workshops on human rights for young people in the area.  Sammy Douglas MLA for East Belfast delighted the children by showing up to judge the art competition and present prizes.  John McCullough from the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People (NICCY) led the young people through workshops, which took place at Avoniel leisure centre, tackling issues such as social inclusion, community safety and human rights generally.  The Human Rights Consortium ran art and letter-writing competitions where the children and young people learned about human rights and explored what rights are most important to them.  Children under 12 years old made colourful human rights postcards while the teenagers wrote letters to their local MLA Sammy Douglas, telling him what particular right they would like to see in a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. Congratulations to Aaron and Alisha who won the art competition, and to Ace and Leonie who won top prizes in the letter writing competition.  Sorcha McKenna, Campaigns Manager at the Human Rights Consortium said: ‘"these workshops are a great opportunity for young people to learn not only about rights but how to constructively engage with local MLAs. Many of the young people raised the issues of inequality, unemployment and rioting which they felt should be addresses through a Bill of Rights”. This initiative is part of an on-going programme to equip the young people of East Belfast with the tools they need to realise their rights.  As part of the 12th July celebrations this year Tricia Magee from WAVE Trauma Centre worked with teenagers from East Belfast and Ohio, USA to discuss human rights from a local and international context.  The aim of the workshops is to introduce the concept of human rights and to empower young people to use a rights-based approach to address the day-to-day issues that affect them – such as educational underachievement, lack of employment opportunities, and community development issues. Sam White from the Lower Castlereagh Community Group said: ‘today was a great success – the children learned about their rights while also having a great time.  We will continue to promote human rights in our community and to educate young people on how to ensure that theirs are upheld.’ Young people from East Belfast show off their certificates of participation alongside the workshop organisers. East Belfast MLA Sammy Douglas judges the human rights postcard competition. For more photos of the day click here. 2011-08-05T12:45:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/groundbreaking_new_direction_to_12th_july_celebrations_in_east_belfast/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/groundbreaking_new_direction_to_12th_july_celebrations_in_east_belfast/#When:14:12:00Z Press Release Issued: 19/07/2011 Groundbreaking new direction to 12th July celebrations in East Belfast Young people from East Belfast were involved in a groundbreaking initiative to bring human rights into their 12th July celebrations, and into their community. The Lower Castlereagh Community Group, as part of their 2011 12th July celebrations invited the Human Rights Consortium to host a workshop on human rights for young people in the area and a group of visiting youths from Ohio, USA.  The workshop took place in Avoneil Leisure Centre on 10th July. This initiative follows on from a hugely successful festival last year.  Sorcha McKenna, Campaigns Manager at the Human Rights Consortium said: ‘We’re delighted to be invited back for another year.  These workshops are a great way to introduce the concept of human rights to young people, and to empower them to use a rights-based approach to address the day-to-day issues that affect them – such as educational underachievement, lack of employment opportunities, and community development issues.’ The inclusion of the America students added an interesting dimension to the session; participants were encouraged to think of the similarities and differences in the challenges facing young people on both sides of the Atlantic.  The workshop ended with a brainstorming session on how young people could effect change – for instance forming groups, raising awareness, lobbying their representatives etc. Sam White from the Lower Castlereagh Community Group stated that ‘the enthusiasm amongst the young people was encouraging and we hope to continue to promote human rights in our community and to equip young people with the language and tools to ensure that their rights are respected and protected.’ He went on to say that they plan to incorporate a human rights day into this year’s Summer Scheme which will take place in August and will include workshops, arts competitions and drama. Young people from East Belfast and Ohio come together to discuss human rights in a workshop organised by Lower Castlereagh Community Group and the Human Rights Consortium. 2011-07-19T14:12:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/a_bill_of_rights_for_ni_progress_and_next_steps/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/a_bill_of_rights_for_ni_progress_and_next_steps/#When:10:06:00Z Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland Programme Director speaks at the NICEM 13th Annual Human Rights & Equality Conference (1st July 2011) on the progress of a Bill of Rights to date, where we are now, and what needs to be done to deliver on one the last unfulfilled elements of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland – progress and next steps On 23rd May 1998 people in Northern Ireland went to the polls, not this time for one of our all-too-regular electoral outings, but for the remarkable task of giving the popular verdict on a peace deal, after nearly thirty years of violent conflict. People here responded positively to the efforts of Northern Ireland political parties and the UK and Irish Governments in reaching the Belfast / Good Friday Agreement. With a Northern Ireland turnout of 81%, 71% of people here - including a majority of the electorate from both the main sides of the community - endorsed the deal. That agreement is unequivocal in its insistence that equality, social justice and rights formed a cornerstone of the new society we committed to building. From the Declaration of Support, with its reference to the human rights of all, to the specific sections on rights and equality, this is an Agreement with an understanding of what a better and fairer Northern Ireland might look like. Discussion of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland goes back much further than 1998. Through the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, the idea was there, often debated and pretty well backed by parties of many hues. At one point the holy grail for some was the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights. Others envisaged a home-grown Bill of Rights: ECHR-plus. For many, a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland needed to be part of any constitutional arrangements that would be required to bring us out of a period of violence and worsening division. Which brings us to 1998 and the Agreement. Part of the vision of the Agreement was a Northern Ireland Bill of Rights. We can parse and re-interpret the specific wording if we like, but it seems pretty clear that the Good Friday Agreement did envisage a NI Bill of Rights and that this amounted to more than simple incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights. Let’s just revisit that wording, as it seems to be such a cause of controversy, picked apart and left bereft of meaning by those who, frankly, might prefer that Northern Ireland does not get its own Bill of Rights. Indeed let me quote Baroness Garden of Frognal, a government spokesperson in the Lords, from 28th February this year: “The Belfast agreement states that the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission will be invited to consult and to advise on the scope for defining, in Westminster legislation, rights supplementary to those in the European Convention on Human Rights to reflect the particular circumstances of Northern Ireland, and these additional rights, together with the ECHR, to constitute a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. She continued: “The joint declaration of 2003 also states that, after consultation with the parties, the British Government are committed to bringing forward legislation at Westminster where required to give effect to rights supplementary to the ECHR to reflect the particular circumstances of Northern Ireland.” In between those two dates, 1998 and 2003, the Human Rights Consortium came into being, as a vehicle first for encouraging involvement in the NIHRC consultation process and then as a campaign coalition to give effect to its member organisations’ wishes to see a strong and inclusive Bill of Rights As the NIHRC consulted and drafted, and some political parties dragged their heels about properly engaging in the process of planning a NI Bill of Rights, the Human Rights Consortium threw its support behind the idea of a Bill of Rights Forum which would bring together representatives of all parties and strands of civil society to attempt to build consensus on the Bill. The St Andrews Agreement 2006 - endorsed this time by the DUP, the only party to have rejected the GFA - provided the political basis for the establishment of a Bill of Rights Forum.  Lobbying by the Human Rights Consortium ensured that the Forum of 28 members had equal representation from political parties and civil society, with 14 representatives from each, including quite a number from organisations which are members of the Consortium. The Forum was chaired by Chris Sidoti, and reported in March 2008. The final report listed its recommendations with levels of support indicated and while the man diverse strands of civil society achieved a remarkable level of agreement, the parties reflecting our political divisions failed to sign up to a shared view in the final report. Yet, that failure to agree at the end of the process hid from public view a high level of constructive engagement by parties behind the scenes in the committee rooms of the working parties. That constructive engagement gives me hope today that a more focused process of political negotiation, with a sense that the parties were engaged in the end-game of the Bill of Rights agreement process, rather than just another staging post in the long years of consultation, prevarication and publication of drafts, could indeed lead to an agreed Bill. The NI Human Rights Commission submitted its very comprehensive advice to the Secretary of State on 10 December 2008. The Commission concluded that: - Existing provisions of the ECHR could be supplemented, for example, the right to liberty and security of the person and the right to a fair trial. - The Bill of Rights should respect the internationally recognised principle of indivisibility of rights, through the inclusion of justiciable social and economic rights (health, adequate standard of living, accommodation, work, and social security rights). - A Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland should take care not to undermine existing guarantees and protections. - A Bill of Rights should build on, and not undermine, the Human Rights Act 1998. - Oversight of a Bill of Rights was not merely for the courts. The Commission recommended the creation of a new Assembly Committee on Human Rights, as well as a periodic review mechanism. The then Secretary of State, Shaun Woodward gave the advice a frosty reception. The NIO response was published on 30th November 2009. To say that its content was disappointing would be inaccurate, for the word disappointment does not do justice to the level of anger felt by many across the community at the contempt with which they felt they and their views and the whole process of consultation were being treated. But that anger was turned into a magnificent campaign which saw the Human Rights Consortium warn the public, through billboards and mailshots, not “to be done out of their rights.” The public responded in unprecedented numbers for a government consultation. Instead of the few dozen or few hundred responses which a Government consultation normally generates, 36,492 responses were submitted, overwhelmingly from individual members of the public and organisations rejecting the government’s position and backing that of the Consortium, that is that Northern Ireland should have a credible, effective and enforceable Bill of Rights. For instance, in their submissions, groups representing the interests of ethnic minorities in Northern Ireland - including NICEM - noted the importance of the inclusion of Economic and Social rights in any proposed Bill of Rights. The Indian Community Centre stressed that the right to housing and that cultural and language rights were especially significant. An Munia Tober emphasised the need for a right of respect for Irish Traveller culture, and the right to freedom from discrimination and negative stereotyping in both public and private spheres. Additionally they called for a right to education, equality in the criminal justice system and policing, the right to practice and enjoy culture and the right of access to health services and play and leisure facilities. Extensive polling, commissioned by the Human Rights Consortium and carried out independently by Northern Ireland’s main polling company, demonstrated overwhelming support for a NI Bill of Rights among the Northern Ireland public, with 70% and 80%-plus figures - from right across the main community division - supporting a Bill of Rights, including one that protects social and economic rights. Yet the incoming Secretary of State Owen Paterson has been, if anything, even frostier, suggesting that if there was any need for a NI Bill of Rights - and that he was far from convinced there was, a paragraph or two in a British Bill of Rights would probably suffice. At least that’s how he, Minister of State Dominic Grieve articulated their position before and just after they came into government. They appeared content to see the process stalled with some Northern Ireland parties expressing opposition or little enthusiasm for a Bill and the UK government showing no interest in bring forward the work of the previous 12 years. Yet, when I met the Secretary of State a couple of months ago, he appeared to me to have changed his tune, or at the very least, his tone. I have reason to believe that, with ongoing public support for a NI Bill of Rights and in the face of determined campaigning by civil society, led by the Human Rights Consortium, we may be in a position of increased confidence about the future of the Bill than we have had reason to be for some time. This last year has seen an ever-increasing number of questions being asked of the Government in both the Commons and Lords, about when and how they are going to make progress on delivering a NI Bill of Rights. We have seen a new Irish Government come into office, which despite the many economic concerns with which it must contend, has reiterated its support for a NI Bill. We have seen support gathering in Capitol Hill, with members of Congress writing to the PM asking him to deliver on the Agreement with respect to the Bill. We have seen public support in NI, as indicated in opinion polling, increase in support for a Bill of Rights, not diminish, despite the slowness of progress and a general anti-human rights climate in sections of the print media. The Secretary of State is now saying that he recognises that the UK Government has an undelivered commitment from the Agreement in terms of the Bill of Rights. That in itself is very significant. He indicated that he wants to fulfill that commitment. That is reassuring. He said that he thinks that a parallel Northern Ireland process to the one now happening UK-wide re a possible UK Bill of Rights is a way forward. That is both promising and concerning. Promising in that it shows the Government is thinking about a way to achieve delivery. Concerning, as the current UK Commission on a Bill of Rights may not get very far, given its background, terms of reference and make-up. He said that he thinks a UK piece of legislation, subsequent to these parallel processes - and encompassing any new UK Bill of Rights and a NI Bill of Rights - could be delivered within the lifetime of this government. That too, I think is both promising and concerning. Promising as it may offer a possible way out of the cul de sac of some parties here only being interested in a UK Bill, with others focused on the achievement of a NI Bill. Might such a way forward be a possible way to square that circle? I don’t know, but there are other changed or changing circumstances which might also provide a context for negotiation and agreement. A new NIHRC is about to come into office. It can build on the work of the Commissions under Professors Brice Dickson and Monica McWilliams, but could also provide an opportunity for fresh thinking and fresh engagement by Commissioners, the local parties and civil society. With elections years away, parties here can get on with the business of tackling some difficult tasks without looking over their shoulders at political rivals. They have successfully found agreement on much more intractable problems than the Bill of Rights over the years of the peace process. There is no reason why they can’t use the next couple of years to reach agreement on this too. And events of the last few weeks should serve as a reminder that the process of constructing peace is not complete. Divisions in our community are as deep as ever. Violence can still erupt, upsetting the tidy narrative that all is rosy. As the shock of the economic crisis starts to make itself felt locally, it is the same sections of our community which will feel the pain hardest, that felt the pain of conflict hardest during the preceding decades. A Northern Ireland Bill of Rights is needed now, just as much as in 1998. We should look forward with renewed determination and hope that we can complete this particular constitutional project. Through the work of civil society groups and others, we have kept the Bill of Rights on the agenda, we have built and maintained public support and we have ensured there are voices in London, Dublin, Washington and throughout NI being raised in its support We now need to see the UK Government show real leadership on this issue and put together a process, with the local parties and the Irish Government, which will lead to an agreed Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. We still need a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. Not simply any Bill of Rights, but one worthy of the name and that respects how we as a society, with particular circumstances and particular experiences and history want to forge our future. If we are successful, we will have helped make NI a better, fairer place for our children. Not a bad ambition. Thank you. 2011-07-18T10:06:00+00:00 http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/human_rights_consortium_pays_tribute_to_kader_asmal/ http://www3.billofrightsni.org/news_and_events/article/human_rights_consortium_pays_tribute_to_kader_asmal/#When:14:20:00Z The Human Rights Consortium would like to pay tribute to Professor Kader Asmal, a former Minister in the South African Government, lawyer and academic, who died on 22nd June 2011. The Human Rights Consortium were privileged to have Professor Asmal speak at our 2007 conference where he shared the South African experience of developing a Bill of Rights and any lessons that could be learned for Northern Ireland’s on-going process.  Speaking at the conference about the importance of a Bill of Rights, Professor Asmal said: “In South Africa the development of a Bill of Rights allowed all our people, all our communities and all our traditions to contribute to the development of a rights-based society which underpinned the new direction that we had embarked upon. It would be my hope that a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland would also be a key building block that likewise protects the rights of everyone and lays out a blueprint for the shared future that Northern Ireland deserves.” Professor Asmal lived in Dublin for 27 years between 1963 and 1990 where he became a senior lecturer at Trinity College and a barrister of law.  He returned to South Africa when the ban on the ANC was lifted, was elected MP and in 1994 was appointed Government Minister by Nelson Mandela.  He stayed in Government until 2004 when he retired but remained an essential critical voice. The Human Rights Consortium sends its deepest sympathies to Professor Asmal’s wife and family. Professor Asmal addresses the 2007 Annual Conference of the Human Rights Consortium 2011-06-24T14:20:00+00:00