"Human rights policing vacuum as merger crawls to a conclusion" April 8 2013
The Equality and Rights Alliance, a coalition of 171 civil society groups, reports a steady dismantling of Ireland’s equality and human rights infrastructure since 2008. The change in government and announcement of the merger in late 2011 appears to have done little to reverse this process.
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'Concern Over Rights Body Bill' June 30, 2012
In its submission to the Oireachtas committee, the ERA states that the appointment of Ms Dempsey “removes autonomy from the commission to appoint its own director as recommended by the working group reporting to the Minister on the merger”.
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'Labour Party Must Return to Being Equality & Rights Defenders' June 12 2012
Civil society groups have been campaigning collectively, under the banner of the Equality and Rights Alliance, to protect the infrastructure since the massive cuts imposed by the previous government in 2009. Two weeks ago they sent a petition, signed by over 70 NGOs and trade unions, to Alan Shatter calling on him to ensure that four key standards are met to ensure the effective and independent functioning of the new body. So far they have received no response from the minister
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'Alliance welcomes European analysis that cuts are strangling equality & human rights in Ireland' Feb 19 2013
Equality & Rights Alliance (ERA) said that it welcomed the endorsement by the European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) for the alliance’s long standing analysis that severe cuts to Ireland’s equality and human rights bodies had strangled their effectiveness for four years and were now threatening the viability of their proposed merger.
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'Human Rights Begin At Home Says Equality & Rights Alliance' Nov 13 2012
While welcoming the news that Ireland will take a seat at the UN Human Rights Council for the first time next year, ERA said that the new Human Rights and Equality Commission was still not in operation after more than a year's planning and consultation, with all indications that legislation to establish the newly merged body would not now be ready until Spring 2013. In the meantime, Ireland is without a Human Rights Chief Commissioner and the two existing bodies were effectively operating in limbo.
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'Danger that New Equality & Rights Body Is Being Set up to Fail' July 3 2012
One of Ireland’s largest civil society alliances, Equality & Rights Alliance, today voiced concern that the government may be setting up the new Human Rights and Equality Commission to fail.
Speaking ahead of a presentation tomorrow to the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Equality & Defence on the Heads of the Bill, ERA co-ordinator Rachel Mullen said that new body, as set out in draft legislation, did not meet international standards of independence and effectiveness on many fronts
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'Merger Legislation Poses More Questions than it Answers' June 5 2012
Equality & Rights Alliance (ERA) today said that it was concerned that the new Human Rights and Equality Commission could be starting on the back foot before it even came into existence following publication of the Heads of Bill for the new body.
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'Drop the Pretence on Equality and Rights Coalition Tells Government' May 10 2012
A number of ERA members presented a petition, signed by over 70 ERA member groups, to Minister Alan Shatter’s office, calling on him to ensure that four key standards are met which will assess
if the new Human Rights and Equality Commission is fit for purpose
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