This blog post by Adrienne Reilly[1] introduces in brief the complex area of symbolic reparation, namely memorialisation and memorial practice that she is currently investigating as part of her doctoral research. On March 29th 2021, a Panel of Experts[2] spoke at an online event organised by Amnesty International Northern Ireland on Learning the Lessons: Co-Designing…Continue reading Symbolic Reparation: Memorialisation and symbolic justice – Thoughts on the impending Mother and Baby Homes & Magdalen Laundries Inquiry in Northern Ireland Adrienne Reilly, part-time Doctoral student in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Strathclyde, Scotland
Category: Inquiries & The Past
Immunity for State Forces in Latin America and Northern Ireland: A Comparative Perspective By Gemma Canham, Graduate in Politics and Spanish, Queen's University Belfast
Introduction Following the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, a “piecemeal” method of dealing with the past emerged due to that agreement’s lack of an overarching method to confront the legacy of the Troubles.[1] Due to this lack of continuity, the Stormont House Agreement (2014) provided for four measures to fill this gap: (1) an Implementation…Continue reading Immunity for State Forces in Latin America and Northern Ireland: A Comparative Perspective By Gemma Canham, Graduate in Politics and Spanish, Queen’s University Belfast
One rule for the military, another for the rest? Special courts and hiding accountability in Colombia Daniela Castillo, Volunteer for CAJ and Master’s Student at TJI
Since the 2014 Stormont House Agreement, there have been a number of alternative proposals to deal with the legacy of the Northern Ireland conflict recently examined in a report by the CAJ-QUB Model Bill Team. Many of these came from groupings seeking various forms of amnesty or ‘statutes of limitations’ for the security forces, specifically…Continue reading One rule for the military, another for the rest? Special courts and hiding accountability in Colombia Daniela Castillo, Volunteer for CAJ and Master’s Student at TJI
Autumn in Northern Ireland: Parameters of a political, social and economic crisis Guest post by Brian Gormally, Director, CAJ
As autumn arrives in Northern Ireland a many-sided crisis, already developing, will affect all our lives. There is a crisis of governance at a UK level. The current government, headed by Boris Johnson, has a working majority of one in the House of Commons, even with the support of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). The…Continue reading Autumn in Northern Ireland: Parameters of a political, social and economic crisis Guest post by Brian Gormally, Director, CAJ
A re-tread of tired approaches: A review of ‘Sectarianism in Northern Ireland: A Review’ Guest post by Brian Gormally, Director, CAJ
“The attention paid to ‘sectarianism’ in this paper, is not intended to be judgemental or pejorative, but to describe a common predicament: we were raised in a society where sectarianism was ‘built in’ to normality.” That single sentence taken from page 8 of Sectarianism in Northern Ireland: A Review, published in early May, encapsulates the…Continue reading A re-tread of tired approaches: A review of ‘Sectarianism in Northern Ireland: A Review’ Guest post by Brian Gormally, Director, CAJ
Addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland’s past Guest post by Chief Commissioner Les Allamby, Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC)
One of the realities of the legacy of the past and moving forward the institutions created in the Stormont House Agreement is that they are the only game in town. There is no plan ‘B’ and no realistic prospect of any alternative arriving in the foreseeable future. The Commission welcomes the draft consultation and legislation…Continue reading Addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland’s past Guest post by Chief Commissioner Les Allamby, Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC)
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…Continue reading The Return of the Bill of Rights? Guest Post by Professor Colin Harvey and Dr Anne Smith
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…Continue reading The Good Friday Agreement at 20 Event Invitation – 10 April 2018
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…Continue reading A pension for seriously injured victims of the Troubles – a human rights issue Guest Post by Dr Luke Moffett
The High Court quashes the decision of the PSNI not to investigate in the case of the Hooded Men
We are delighted to welcome this guest post from Fidelma O’Hagan, Committee on the Administration of Justice. Fidelma can be reached at fidelma@caj.org.uk. On 27 October 2017, Mr Justice Maguire handed down judgment in favour of the applicants, Mary McKenna and Francis McGuigan, and quashed the 2014 PSNI decision to not progress an investigation to…Continue reading The High Court quashes the decision of the PSNI not to investigate in the case of the Hooded Men
You’ll never walk alone – Hillsborough and the Human Rights Act
We are pleased to welcome this guest post from Dr Claire McCann, Human Rights Officer (Rights in Practice) with the Human Rights Consortium. Yesterday was a significant day for the families of those people killed in Hillsborough, who have fought so hard to discover the truth of what happened on that fateful day 27 years…Continue reading You’ll never walk alone – Hillsborough and the Human Rights Act
‘The Impact of the Human Rights Act in Northern Ireland’, Conference Overview
The threat to the Human Rights Act rumbles on, albeit, in muted tones compared to the fanfare of the Conservatives 2014 proposals and now juxtaposed by Michael Gove, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice’s tepid responses to the House of Lords EU Justice Sub-Committee earlier this week, in relation to their inquiry on…Continue reading ‘The Impact of the Human Rights Act in Northern Ireland’, Conference Overview