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 to equality […]
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The CAJ Equality Duty Enforcement Project and Equality Coalition Research ‘Equal to the Task?’ Guest Post by Caroline Maguire, CAJ
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 […]
Brexit, the Withdrawal Agreement, and a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland Guest post by Dr Amanda Kramer, BrexitLawNI
Concerns surrounding the impact of Brexit on human rights and Northern Ireland have featured prominently in ongoing Brexit debates, media coverage of Brexit, and the Brexit negotiations themselves. It is well known that NI is the region of the UK most likely to be negatively affected by leaving the EU – with potential consequences for […]
#MeToo – Where is the Line? A guest post by Elaine Crory, HollaBack!
For the past few months it’s been unavoidable. Everyone knows what the hashtag #metoo is concerned with and mainstream news shows and talk shows have been tackling, with varying degrees of success, the problem of sexual assault and consent. Hollywood first, then entertainment generally, it even spread to Westminster. For those of us who have […]
RightsNI gets a makeover
There is a renewed commitment to the RightsNI Blog, CAJ and Amnesty set the blog up to be a source of information sharing and awareness on all the diverse topics within human rights, equality and non discrimination. The areas covered in the blog range from LGBT rights, gender equality and disability rights to name a […]