14 January 2019
Email your local candidates in support of ICCL’s 8 asks
Update: See if your candidates have endorsed human rights:
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) today launched its Election 2020 Manifesto. The human rights organisation has asked political candidates and parties to commit to 8 straightforward advances if elected. These advances are immediate goals in the larger project to shape a society where everybody’s human rights and individual freedoms are respected.
ICCL’s 8 calls are:
- Establish Safe Access Zones at medical facilities so that women and pregnant people can access abortion care in privacy, safety and with dignity.
- Introduce Hate Crime legislation so that we all feel safer from hateful attacks.
- Protect our privacy and data by halting the illegal Public Services Card project.
- Establish a new Independent Office of the Police Ombudsman so that we can all have confidence in An Garda Síochána.
- Implement inspections of all places of detention in order to prevent torture behind closed doors.
- Establish an Ombudsman for Victims of Crime to ensure justice for victims of crime.
- Outlaw image-based sexual abuse to prevent non-consensual creation and/or sharing of intimate images.
- Reform the Electoral Act to allow civil society organisations to function without fear.
ICCL has been leading campaigns on all of the above issues for some years now. Each one can be brought forward within structures which already exist.
ICCL director Liam Herrick said:
These are straightforward reforms which would have a huge impact on the rights of countless individuals. For example, hate crime legislation would send a strong message to far-right actors that, as a society, we won’t tolerate actions motivated by hatred or prejudice.
Allowing independent inspections of pyschiatric institutions, and other places of detention like nursing homes and direct provision centres, could help protect some of the most vulnerable in our society from possible torture. Safe zones would immediately protect the privacy and healthcare rights of women at a time of crisis.
ICCL will be sending its election manifesto to all political parties asking them to commit to these advances if elected. The organisation will also be asking the public to contact their local politicians asking them to sign up to these commitments.
ENDS/
Email your local candidates in support of these 8 asks
Full text of the ICCL election calls: https://www.iccl.ie/iccl-manifesto-2020/
More information on individual campaigns:
ICCL safe zones campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/iccl-investigation-safe-zone/
ICCL hate crime campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/hate-crime/
ICCL Public Services Card campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/privacy/public-services-card/
ICCL Garda reform campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/justice/policing/
ICCL prevention of torture campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/historic-abuse-and-transitional-justice/
ICCL Victims’ Project: https://www.iccl.ie/justice/victims-rights/
ICCL image-based sexual abuse campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/news/iccl-calls-for-action-on-image-based-sexual-abuse/
ICCL Electoral Act campaign: https://www.iccl.ie/coalition-csf-statement-electoral-act/
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties is Ireland’s leading independent human rights campaigning organisation. We monitor, educate and campaign to secure human rights for everyone in Ireland.
For comment:
Liam Herrick: liam.herrick@iccl.ie 087 2351374
For media queries:
Sinéad Nolan: sinead.nolan@iccl.ie 087 4157162