COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION CONSIDERS REPORT OF IRELAND

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has considered the report of Ireland on its implementation of the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

Presenting the report was Frank Fahey, Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform of Ireland, who noted that Ireland had gone from a country of high emigration to one of net immigration and as a result there were now people from over 170 different nationalities in the country. The Traveller community was Ireland’s most disadvantaged indigenous minority which had suffered from extensive exclusion, deprivation and discrimination. The Irish Government was committed to combating discrimination and exclusion against the Traveller community and had spent in excess of 100 million Euros on Travellers' education, health, housing and other sectors.

In the course of the discussion, which was held over two meetings, issues concerning the State party’s poverty strategy; immigration and asylum; and a wide range of issues concerning the Traveller community in Ireland, namely their education, health, housing and employment, were raised among other subjects.

In preliminary remarks, the country Rapporteur for the report, Committee Expert Kurt Herndl, commended the Government for its overhaul of Irish legislation, especially in the area of human rights, as well as for the creation of new institutions, namely the Irish Commission on Human Rights. While noting as positive the good will of the Government to remedy the situation of the Travellers, the Rapporteur said the matter of identifying them as an ethnic minority should be considered further.

The Committee will present its final conclusions and recommendations on the initial and second periodic reports of Ireland, which were presented in one document, at the end of its session, which concludes on 11 March.

The delegation of Ireland also included representatives of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform; the Department of Foreign Affairs; the Department of Social and Family Affairs; the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment; the Department of Education and Science; the Department of Environment; the Department of Health and Children; the Office of the Attorney General; the Central Statistics Office; the An Garda Siochana (Police Force); and the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m. this afternoon, it will begin its consideration of the sixth and seventh periodic reports of Bahrain (CERD/C/443/Add.1).

Report of Ireland

The initial and second periodic reports of Ireland, presented in one document CERD/C/460/Add.1, take stock of the progress made in developing a wide-ranging and effective anti-discrimination framework and state that levels of hostility to ethnic minorities remain relatively low in Ireland. With the enactment of the Employment Equality Act, 1998, which prohibits discrimination and provides for redress on nine grounds, including the ground of race, in regard to employment, and the Equal Status Act 2000, which prohibits discrimination and provides for redress across the same nine grounds in regard to goods and services, Ireland was in a position to give full effect to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and had ratified it accordingly.

The Office of the Director of Equality Investigations (OEDI - The Equality Tribunal), established in October 1999, provides free, independent and effective means of redress for victims of discrimination on any of the nine grounds in the equality legislation. In the same month the Government also established the Equality Authority to work towards the elimination of conduct prohibited under the equality legislation, to promote equality of opportunity and to provide information to the public on the workings of the two equality Acts. Other bodies have also been established to provide a focus for the fight against racism in key areas. These include the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism and the Garda Racial and Intercultural Office which aims to coordinate, monitor and advise on all aspects of policing in the area of racial, ethnic and cultural diversity.

Although there has always been a level of cultural diversity in Ireland, there has been a dramatic expansion over the past few years, the report states. Prior to 1996, Ireland was a country of net emigration; now migrant workers, refugees and asylum-seekers from over 100 countries are represented in Ireland. Statistics provide evidence that racist hostility is on the rise in Ireland. Research and statistics from the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism and the Office of the Director of Equality Investigations show that the increase in cultural diversity has been accompanied by a shift in the degree of prejudice and intolerance experienced by ethnic minorities. Moreover, the Government is currently considering the results of an extensive consultation with the public, interested bodies and non-governmental organizations on the National Action Plan against Racism which aims at producing a strategy for tackling racism and promoting an inclusive society, by defining what integration actually means in practical terms, pulling together existing policies and identifying new initiatives to achieve the goal of integration. The Government’s vision for tackling racism is underpinned by the National Anti-Poverty Strategy which provides a coherent framework for actions to tackle exclusion and disadvantage. Among the targets set in strategy are objectives for members of ethnic minority groups. Moreover, the report draws attention to the launching in 2001 of the three-year National Anti-Racism Awareness Programme entitled "Know Racism".

Presentation of Report

FRANK FAHEY, Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform of Ireland, noted that his country had ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination in 2000 and had a long history of commitment to human rights and promoting a fair society most clearly articulated in its Constitution of 1937. As per the Constitution, people in Ireland were able to obtain vindication of their fundamental rights.

Mr. Fahey noted that Ireland’s economy had seen unprecedented growth and was now seen as one of the fastest growing economies in the developed world. Ireland had gone from a country of high emigration to one of net immigration; and from a place of high unemployment in the 1980s to a situation today where there were good job opportunities. In the past 10 to 15 years Ireland has seen its population reach its highest level since 1881, passing the four million mark. As a result of immigration to Ireland, there were now people from over 170 different nationalities living there. Moreover, since the European Union enlargement last year, the number of people who had migrated to Ireland from the 10 new Member States was in the region of 50,000. Ireland’s progress as an economy and society had been paralleled by the growth of diversity whose pace had accelerated in recent times.

The head of the delegation noted that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform was working on proposals for a new legislative framework in the immigration area. The development of a comprehensive immigration Bill would provide a fair and sensible legislative framework for dealing with all aspects of the entry and stay in the State on non-nationals. To help in the development of that legislation, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform would publish shortly a discussion paper outlining the maters that needed to be addressed in legislation and the current thinking on those issues. Ireland had in place comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation enacted in this regard in 1998, with the Employment Equality Act, and in 2000, with the Equal Status Act. This legislation prohibited both direct and indirect discrimination in the areas of employment and access to goods and services on various grounds, including gender, religion, age, disability and race. Also in place were the necessary institutional structures, in the shape of the Equality Authority and the Equality Tribunal, to ensure effective implementation of the statutes. Further amendments to both these Acts were made in the Equality Act of 2004, which gave effect in domestic law to Ireland’s obligations as a member of the European Union to implement the Community initiatives and which provided for equal treatment.

The Irish Government used the opportunity of holding the European Union Presidency in the first half of 2004 to highlight developments in combating racism at the European level. Among other things, Ireland had hosted a conference in June 2004 entitled "Combating Racism through Building a more Inclusive, Intercultural Europe".

In the context of the recently announced plans to increase the number of members serving in An Garda Siochana (the police force), the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform had asked the Commissioner of the An Garda Siochana to look at the eligibility criteria, particularly with a view to attracting members from Ireland’s ethnic communities to join the force. The Government’s view was that it was crucial that its law enforcement agency was representative of the new, diverse Ireland to ensure professional and effective policing in its communities, Mr. Fahey said.

The Traveller community was Ireland’s most disadvantaged indigenous minority and had suffered from extensive exclusion, deprivation and discrimination. The Irish Government was committed to combating the discrimination and exclusion of Travellers. The Government has spent in excess of 100 million Euros on Traveller education, health, housing and other sectors. This was in addition to ordinary spending on general education, health and social assistance services which Travellers were equally entitled to. Progress had been made in the provision of accommodation for Travellers. At the end of the first Traveller accommodation programme, which covered the period 2000 to 2004, an additional 1,371 Traveller families had been provided with permanent accommodation by or with the assistance of local authorities and voluntary bodies. In the same period, the number of families on unauthorized sites had halved from 1,207 families at the start of the programme to 610. Moreover, local authorities were required to include annual targets for the provision of all types of Traveller accommodation.

Mr. Fahey drew attention to the launching of Ireland's National Action Plan in January this year which provided strategic direction to combat racism and to promote the development of a more inclusive, intercultural society in the country. He also noted the increasing emphasis on involving ethnic minorities in the development of health programmes throughout the health service. Moreover, the Department of Education and Science was currently finalizing its draft five-year strategy on Traveller education.

In closing, Mr. Fahey expressed the Government’s willingness to support the work of the Coordinator of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination with regard to follow up procedures.

Questions Raised by Experts

KURT HERNDL, the Committee Expert serving as country Rapporteur, noted the significant legislation reforms which had recently taken place in the State party and praised Ireland for having ratified both the Convention and article 14 to it, thus allowing individual communications. In that context, he asked what had been done to promote awareness of these steps taken by the Government to the public. While noting as positive the State party’s good record in terms of ratifying international instruments, he asked whether Ireland had any plans to ratify the Convention on Migrant Workers. Mr. Herndl also noted with satisfaction that the Government had consulted a host of non-governmental organizations when drafting the report in question.

While referring to the Equality Authority, the Equality Tribunal and the Garda Siochana human rights unit, Mr. Herndl asked what the status of that unit was within the police force. He also asked whether Ireland had foreseen becoming a State party to the Convention on Cyber Crime and its protocol

The Rapporteur asked what steps could be taken to make the Convention applicable in domestic law. Speaking on the Equal Status Act, he also asked whether there was a possibility of expanding the scope of the Act. Specifically, he asked whether the motive of racial hatred was seen as an aggravated circumstance when being considered by a judge.

Turning to the issue of refugees, Mr. Herndl asked whether the refugee act of the State had provided for a special appeals procedure. Similarly, he asked for more information about the separation of families and family reunification measures.

On employment, the country Rapporteur noted that employment could be refused on one ground, based on religion, and asked for additional information. He also asked what the State was doing to enlarge the element of multi-denominational schools in Ireland.

Mr. Herndl also sought additional information on the measures being taken by the State to combat Islamaphobia and on increased hostility against minority groups in general.

While noting the establishment of the Task Force dealing with the Travellers community, the Rapporteur asked what had been done to implement the findings of the Task Force. He also asked why the Government of Ireland had been reluctant to recognize Travellers as a special group.

Referring to the National Action Plan and the National Action Poverty Strategy, Mr. Herndl asked what steps the Government had taken to factor in the Traveller community when implementing these measures.

Other matters raised by the country Rapporteur included the extent to which the judiciary in Ireland received training in the area of discrimination and anti-discrimination; the State’s housing policy for minorities; and unemployment rates. On the last point, he noted that the unemployment rate was very high among the Traveller community as roughly half of Travellers were unemployed. He asked what steps had been taken to remedy this problem.

Another Committee Expert noted that there were no regulatory restraints in place in Ireland which held members of the police force accountable for racial profiling or stereotyping. He asked whether there were any provisions in Irish domestic law and/or policy which may provide for this. Similarly, he asked whether there were any mechanisms for redress or remedy for the victims of such actions. Regarding Government-supported Catholic schools, the Expert asked what options there were to non-Catholic students who may not be admitted to a Catholic school.

Another Expert asked for further clarification on steps to obtaining Irish citizenship. He also asked for more information on the activities of the Ombudsman in ensuring protection on the basis of race and ethnic origin, and specifically how many complaints the Ombudsman received annually. Moreover, he asked what kind of complaints the Ombudsman's Office received and what steps had been taken to address these complaints.

Several Committee Experts raised questions pertaining to the Traveller community, seeking additional information on the steps taken by the Government to remedy the problems faced by them in Irish society. One Expert asked specifically about results achieved to overcome inequalities in this regard.

Other Experts asked for further clarification on the State party’s reservation submitted on the freedom of expression, as per article four of the Convention which prohibited racial propaganda and organizations. On that note, other Experts asked for information about what initiatives had been taken to curb hate and racist slurs by the media as well as by politicians.

A member of the Committee asked for information on cases heard with respect to discrimination and sentences handed down. He also asked for more information on the State’s action plan for poverty in terms of how it applied to disadvantaged groups, in particular the Travellers.

Many Committee members asked for further information on the State’s policy on immigration. In particular, questions raised related to the number of unsuccessful asylum seekers who were detained, where they were detained, for how long, and the conditions of detention.

Other Experts expressed their interest in receiving information about the rights of non-citizens; complaints about employment equality; the possibility of redress for those discriminated against; health services afforded to disadvantaged groups, as well as to undocumented migrants; and about the increase in racial hostility, especially against people of Arab origin and Muslims since the events of 11 September 2001.

Several Experts echoed the interest of receiving information about how the provisions of the Convention were implemented in domestic laws. In particular, a member asked how Ireland viewed the European Human Rights Convention compared to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Similarly, various Experts asked for further clarification as to why it took the State party 32 years to ratify the Convention from the time it signed it in 1968.

While referring to the most recent census questionnaire devised by the Irish Government, a Committee Expert asked for clarification on how the State party came up with the ethnic criteria provided for in the questionnaire.

Another Expert asked for information about the number of complaints against the police and how such complaints were dealt with; moreover, she asked how these complaints, if any, fell under the scope of the Convention.

Referring to Islamaphobia, a Committee Expert referred to reported cases of discrimination taking place at Dublin airport involving people of Arab origin who were allegedly singled out and treated differently for having Arab passports. To that end, he asked the delegation what steps had been taken to address this issue.

Response by Delegation

In response to questions raised about the "Good Friday Agreement", also known as the Belfast Agreement, the delegation said the agreement was signed in April 1998 and was intended to give a new basis for the relationship between the Nationalist and Unionist Communities in Northern Ireland, the relationship between the North and South and that between Britain and Ireland. In addition to the creation of various structures to reflect the sets of these relationships, two Human Rights Commissions had been established in the North and South to underpin the human rights agenda at the heart of the agreement. The Commissions had also set up a joint working group on racism issues.

As to the recognition of Travellers as an ethnic group, the delegation said that when drafting the report, Travellers did not appear to fall within the definition of racial discrimination adopted by the Convention in that they did not appear to constitute a distinct group from the population as a whole in terms of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin. The Government, however, recognized that Travellers had a distinct cultural identity and that they suffered from discrimination and exclusion. The Government of Ireland was committed to challenging discrimination against Travellers and had defined membership of the Traveller community as a separate ground on which it was unlawful to discriminate under equality legislation. Moreover, the position of the Government was that the assertion that Travellers were ethnically different from the majority of the Irish people had not yet been proven. The delegation noted that while there were some similarities between Roma gypsies and Irish Travellers, Irish Travellers were not Roma and did not share a common language, history or culture with Roma.

Concerning immigration matters, the delegation said that the Irish Government earlier this week had approved the establishment of a new Service to be called the Irish Naturalization and Immigration Service which had been tasked with developing a cohesive immigration system, including for the issuing of work permits and visas, the delegation noted. Moreover, the Irish National Economic and Social Council had commissioned a comprehensive study on migration policy which was to be published later this year. The study, to be undertaken by the International Organization for Migration, would develop an understanding of the factors that drove migration in relation to Ireland and the economic and social implications.

On the issue on non-nationals, the delegation said the recently published National Action Plan against Racism referred to the fact that integration of non-nationals was commonly understood to be a two-way process that placed duties and obligations on both cultural and ethnic minorities and the State to create a more inclusive society.

The Irish initiative, which was launched in October 2003 and was referred to as "Know Racism", was designed to protect Irish sport against racism as well as to help plan the Press Code of Conduct which would include standards in dealing with matters such as gender, marital status, family, sexual orientation, religious belief, age, disability, race and membership of the Traveller community.

In relation to the clarification sought by the Rapporteur on the respective roles of the Ombudsman and the Human Rights Commission, the delegation noted that the Ombudsman essentially dealt with "mal-administration" rather than discrimination. She examined and investigated complaints from the public about the administrative actions of certain specified public bodies and had no powers of enforcement.

Concerning the reservation submitted by Ireland on article 4 of the Convention on freedom of expression, the delegation said the Government of Ireland had no intention of withdrawing its reservation.

With regard to the Special Criminal Courts, the delegation said there was no jury in these Courts given the types of offences it dealt with, those being cases of terrorist offences stemming from the Northern Ireland crisis.

In response to the question raised on sanctions against the police, the delegation noted that there were enforceable standards to guide police behaviour based on the respect for human dignity, human rights, and the principles of legality, proportionality and transparency, among other things. In recognition of the increasing cultural diversity in Irish society, the Police Commissioner had set up a training programme aimed at increasing sensitivity towards various cultures while upholding the respect for human rights. Racial profiling was contrary to the policy of the Irish Police Force. The role of the human rights office within the An Garda Siochana was to provide policy advice to members of the police force in consultation with diverse members of society with a view to guaranteeing their rights.

Concerning the National Anti Poverty Strategy, the delegation said its key target was to reduce the numbers of those who were consistently poor and to eliminate consistent poverty. Specific attention was being paid to vulnerable groups, including the Traveller community. The aim of the Strategy was to build a socially inclusive society. The objective with relation to Travellers was to improve their life expectations and to remove any existing barriers to their obtaining social right.

In response to questions raised about Ireland’s education system, the delegation stated that the Education Act of 1998 provided that the Minister may designate a school or a proposed school to be recognized for the purposes of the Act. Multi-denominational primary schools currently represented the fastest growing category in the primary school sector. There were 35 multi-denominational schools at present in Ireland. The goal of the State was to ensure that there were places in Irish schools for students from any background. While noting that all admission policies to schools were published, the delegation said the Equal Status Act aimed at not discriminating against any student upon admission into school. Moreover, as per the Education Act a student was not obligated to attend a class if it was against their religious or cultural beliefs. There were over 150 nationalities represented in the post-primary school system in Ireland.

Concerning Traveller accommodation, the delegation noted that the National Strategy for Traveller Accommodation was adopted in 1998 following the report of the Task Force on the Traveller Community. Under this act, local authorities were required to prepare accommodation programmes covering the period 2000 to 2004.

In response to a question raised about the health situation of Travellers, the delegation said the Irish Government had acknowledged that the health status of the Traveller community was much worse than the general population. In response, a study was conducted to examine the ways in which this situation could be improved, and the Traveller Health National Strategy 2002 -2205 had been launched. The health of Traveller women was also a matter of concern given that their situation was considerably worse than other women in Ireland.

As for health services for asylum seekers, the delegation noted that all asylum seekers were provided with basic health services as were provided to the general population. If any asylum seeker had special health needs, the State made provision for those needs to be met. The local health board had an obligation to make all necessary health arrangements for asylum seekers.

Concerning Traveller employment, the head of the delegation said that the Government had been unsuccessful in making significant progress in this regard, largely due to failed efforts to enrol the majority of Travellers into the school system.

On the issue of immigration, the delegation noted Ireland's recognition that there was a need to improve the services provided in the area of immigration and it had set up the Irish Naturalization and Immigration Service as one way to address this. The Service aimed to improve services to immigrants. As for failed asylum seekers, there is a comprehensive legal framework regarding detention when the latter is necessary.

Concerning deportation, that step only came at the end of a comprehensive protection process and after consideration of all issues, including refoulment and appeals, had been exhausted. If the person was not able to leave the State on his or her own means, the State assisted in that regard. Moreover, a person who was given deportation orders was not detained in any way. The reality, the delegation noted, was that there was widespread evasion of deportation orders.

Addressing the issue of equal status, the delegation said that since October 2000, direct and indirect discrimination had been prohibited on several grounds under the Equal Status Act. The National Action Plan Against Racism sought to impose anti-discrimination training in all sectors of the Government. There was a strong intercultural pillar in the Plan which revolved around measures aimed to guarantee equality to all members in society. Moreover, the Plan embraced the principles of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination as well as the European Convention on Human Rights.

Speaking on behalf of the Irish Human Rights Commission, a member of the Commission said the Commission had been very active over a broad range of human rights while upholding the fight against racism as a main priority. The Commission had been working closely with the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism and the Equality Authority, as well as with non-governmental organizations representing minorities such as the Travellers. Moreover, a joint sub-committee on racism composed of the Commission and the Committee had been created and together they had published a document applicable to migrant workers. In that regard, the Commission had called on the Government to ratify the Convention on Migrant Workers. Furthermore, the Commission had published policy papers on the recognition of Travellers as an ethnic minority as well as a user guide on the application of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

On the issue of asylum seekers, a member of the Commission said that asylum seekers awaiting decision should be allowed to work and the Racial Incitement and Hatred Act should be strengthened. In that context, the Commission had conducted a study on the treatment of foreigners in airports. The Commission may assist someone in legal proceedings on human rights issues.

In response to a follow up question on a Muslim girl being discriminated against in school, the delegation said there was no case law in Ireland to that effect although the Equal Status Act would cover any such instance in that it prohibited any discrimination policy of admitting students into the school system.

Preliminary Observations

KURT HERNDL, the Committee Expert serving as country Rapporteur, thanked the Government of Ireland for having prepared an all-encompassing report which covered all the pertinent issues of the Convention and for demonstrating Ireland's sense of obligation to human rights treaties. The dialogue, he said, seemed to be very forward looking and positive. Mr. Herndl also commended the Government for its overhaul of Irish legislation, especially in the area of human rights, as well as for the creation of new institutions, namely the Irish Commission on Human Rights. He expressed his hope that all human rights in Ireland would continue to be provided with adequate resources.

While noting as positive the good will of the Government to remedy the situation of the Travellers, the Rapporteur said the matter of identifying them as an ethnic minority should be considered further. He also expressed hope that members of the Travellers community would be better represented in law-making bodies.

Lastly, Mr. Herndl raised the issues of incorporating the Convention into domestic legislation and the possible withdrawal of the State party’s reservation on article four as areas of importance.


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CRD05012E