Dr Catherine O’Rourke is Senior Lecturer in Human Rights and International Law at Ulster University Transitional Justice Institute and School of Law. She co-authored the submission requesting the CEDAW Committee to conduct an inquiry into access to abortion in Northern Ireland with Jude Cross (Alliance for Choice), Ann Marie Gray (NIWEP) and the Audrey Simpson […]
The Agreement at 20 Guest Post by Kevin Hanratty
(This personal reflection is a cross posted article from the Irish News and The Human Rights Consortium) 20 years ago today I sat with friends in our student accommodation in Belfast and watched as politicians emerged to announce the new peace deal that was the Good Friday Agreement. We were all students at Queens, had grown up in the […]
The Return of the Bill of Rights? Guest Post by Professor Colin Harvey and Dr Anne Smith
The Northern Ireland Bill of Rights appears to have made a comeback. A process that involved much collective effort seemed to have ended in the vague language of paragraph 69 of the Stormont House Agreement (SHA). With no one prepared to take responsibility for its advancement, hope had faded; like much else relating to rights […]
The Good Friday Agreement at 20 Event Invitation - 10 April 2018
To Register for the event and details of the upcoming seminars please go to the eventbrite page HERE This year marks the 20th Anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. As we reach this milestone, we believe that it is time to not only celebrate the achievement of the Agreement and the role that civic […]
A pension for seriously injured victims of the Troubles – a human rights issue Guest Post by Dr Luke Moffett
Today and tomorrow injured victims from the WAVE Trauma Centre will hold a series of talks in Westminster to advance the issue of a pension for those seriously injured during the Troubles. The move to Westminster comes in the wake of the collapse at Stormont, but also a lack of leadership to deliver redress to […]
CAJ Initial comments on draft Withdrawal Agreement protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland Guest Post by Brian Gormally, CAJ
Synopsis of the Contents The Protocol begins with a lengthy preamble dealing with the context which has led to it. The vital points are: The GFA must be protected “in all its parts” The commitment of the UK to protect North-South cooperation and the guarantee to avoid a hard border are “overarching requirements” and any […]
#CAREDAY18 – TIME TO GET SOCIAL, GET VOCAL AND GET TOGETHER Guest Post by Ruth Barry, VOYPIC
VOYPIC (Voice of Young People in Care) invited everyone to be part of Care Day on Friday 16 February. The feedback is simple – “Best ever Care Day” and it really was an A to Z of activity from early morning till late in the evening. From awards for achievements to a Zoom call […]
Brexit and the Leaked Full Draft Agreement Text Guest post by Dr Amanda Kramer
This Blog piece is cross posted from BrexitLawNI The leaked Full ‘Draft Agreement Text’ was published on Eamonn Mallie’s website on 20 February 2018 and can be found here. It passed from DUP to Sinn Fein on 9 February 2018 – just five days before the talks collapsed and Arlene Foster asked the Secretary of […]
Implementing the ‘Petition of Concern’ – A CAJ Briefing Paper Jan 2018 Guest Post by Daniel Holder
Background The Petition of Concern mechanism has never been implemented as the Good Friday Agreement (GFA) and Northern Ireland Act (NIA) intend or require. This largely due to the way the Standing Orders of the Assembly have been drafted and applied; The Petition of Concern is linked to safeguards in the GFA relating […]
The CAJ Equality Duty Enforcement Project and Equality Coalition Research ‘Equal to the Task?’ Guest Post by Caroline Maguire
With the help of a grant from the Baring Foundation the CAJ has established an Equality Duty Enforcement Project. The project aims to support the work of the members of the Equality Coalition to (i) take forward complaints and other interventions to ensure Northern Ireland’s “Section 75” public sector equality duty is complied with; and […]
Rights at Risk: mapping the human rights concerns of Brexit in Northern Ireland Guest Post by Dr Claire McCann
The human rights and equality safeguards in Northern Ireland which support our peace agreement are built on a complex web of interlocking legal frameworks. Local, national, European and international law all have an important role to play in providing the groundwork upon which the constitutional settlement for Northern Ireland is founded. Brexit risks destabilising the […]
CEDAW and the Security Council: Enhancing Women’s Rights in Conflict Guest Post by Dr Catherine O’Rourke and Dr Aisling Swaine
Recent years have seen a rapid increase of legal and policy developments under international law to advance the rights of women in conflict-affected settings. These developments are accompanied, however, by acute concerns about their efficacy and enforcement. One significant development towards improving overall implementation, enforcement and state compliance with women’s rights in conflict is the […]