3 June 2021
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has said that government must learn lessons from how the pandemic has impacted on human rights. In a wide-ranging report published today ICCL said emergency measures that restricted rights – including dangerous garda spit-hoods – must be ended. Fines for public health matters must be lifted, and a full analysis of measures such as the Covid tracker app must be provided. Government must also take account of how the pandemic has affected marginalised people to avoid entrenching inequality as the country reopens. ICCL also called for an end to emergency powers legislation and a review of the mandatory hotel quarantine system.
Speaking at the launch of the report, ICCL Executive Director Liam Herrick said:
“The Irish people have shown incredible solidarity in accepting extraordinary restrictions on their rights to protect our communities from Covid-19. It is essential that government moves to restore full enjoyment of rights and democratic accountability as an urgent priority. But rights and freedoms must be restored on an equal basis for everyone. People living in congregated settings such as Direct Provision Centres, Traveller halting sites, and prisons have been more at risk than others. Older people and women have also suffered more. Government must provide accurate information as to the affects of restrictions on different groups so that they can be mitigated in the future.”
The Policing Authority Chief Executive Helen Hall and CEO of Age Action Ireland Paddy Connolly also spoke at the launch of the ICCL report.
Ms Hall said
“From the outset of the pandemic, it was and it continues to be, the strong view of the Policing Authority that as the powers given to the Garda Síochána further encroach on peoples’ liberties and rights, that independent public oversight of policing becomes more important. Through this oversight, we saw the Garda Síochána deeply involved with communities and the protection of the vulnerable, telling us much about the depth and quality of the relationship between community and Gardaí. However, policing during COVID-19 has been challenging and the Authority’s extensive programme of engagement reveals that the policing response was not always felt evenly by all parts of society. The challenge for the Garda Síochána will be to take what has been learned about the needs of communities during this crisis, and use these lessons to serve society with a constantly improving policing service for all.”
Mr Connolly said
“ICCL emphasise the need for better consultation structures between people and Government. Despite the direct focus of the pandemic on older people, there was a lack of structured consultation by the Government with them and their representative organisations in terms of the design and impact of lockdown measures. The rights of people living in nursing homes were particularly undermined by the visiting restrictions and the known weaknesses in our long term care infrastructure. Age Action would like to see Government adopt a rights-based protocol for public consultation to ensure that this does not happen again. Age Action continues to call for the appointment of a Commissioner for Older Persons to provide independent voice for older people and accountability from Government.”
ENDS/
Find the full report Human Rights in a Pandemic here: https://www.iccl.ie/human-rights-in-a-pandemic/
Find a briefing for media and policy makers here: https://www.iccl.ie/human-rights-in-a-pandemic-iccl-briefing/
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) is Ireland’s oldest independent human rights campaigning organisation. We monitor, educate and campaign to secure human rights for everyone in Ireland.
For comment: Liam Herrick, Helen Hall, Paddy Connolly. For media queries: sinead.nolan@iccl.ie