Civil Society Space Archives - Irish Council for Civil Liberties

Irish Civil Society Brings Funding Law to UN

01 July 2020

A coalition of NGOs has written to a UN human rights expert expressing concern that overly stringent restrictions on funding mean Irish campaigners are hampered in their work. The NGOs say that in the past three years many organisations have been forced to close; to hand back donations they’ve received; or face prosecution.

The move comes as Ireland delivers a statement to the UN Human Rights Council this week on difficulties facing activists and campaigners globally. While it is very welcome that Ireland is championing civil society space on the international stage, successive governments have failed to address the impact of the Electoral Act on NGOs at home.

Spokesperson for the coalition, ICCL’s Liam Herrick said:

“Ireland’s work on civil society freedom was one of the key reasons it secured a seat at the UN Security Council. At the same time, Irish civil society has raised the ongoing restrictions on freedom of association with the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of association, Mr. Clément Voule. It is time that Ireland matched its fine words and actions internationally with respect for civil society at home.”

In its submission to the Special Rapporteur, the coalition of NGOs – which is comprised of Amnesty International Ireland, Front Line Defenders, The Wheel, Transparency International Ireland, Uplift and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties – say that the difficulties stem from an amendment to the Electoral Act in 2001. They also say that the regulator (the Standards in Public Offices Commission – SIPOC) has been increasingly stringent over the past three years, and that organisations and campaigners have been gagged as a result.

NGOs and the people heading them up have been threatened with prosecution. The criminal offences created by the Electoral Act are significant; the possible penalties for failing to comply are a €25,394 fine and three years’ imprisonment. SIPOC has also directed or advised several CSOs to return funds which it has deemed “prohibited”.

Mr Herrick continued:

“What all this effectively means is that if a group of people want to come together to advocate for change, they are barred from receiving donations of over €100. For most campaigns, this is completely untenable. If we want to continue having national conversations on things of importance to us, this has to be changed immediately.”

ENDS

Notes:

For media enquiries Liam Herrick: :info@iccl.ie 087 4157162

Call to include physically distant protest as a reasonable excuse to leave home

23 April 2020

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has said that the government should review the decision to exclude protest from the list of reasonable excuses to leave home during the pandemic. The call comes as discrepancies arose between garda treatment of protesters in Cork, Dingle, the Four Courts, and Henry St in Dublin.

ICCL’s expert on the right to protest, Doireann Ansbro, said:

“The right to protest, to voice dissent and dissatisfaction without fear of breaking the law, is a core tenet of a democracy. Although the right to protest can be justifiably restricted in a public health crisis for a limited period, the longer the restrictions are in place, the higher the threshold for their justification and the more urgent the need for their review.”

The current regulations, which grant the gardaí extraordinary powers to enforce specific public health measures, contain a non-exhaustive list of reasonable excuses for which people can leave their place of residence. The gardaí can use their discretion to determine what constitutes a “reasonable excuse”. This places individual gardaí in the position of adjudicating on whether someone whose job or livelihood is at stake should be allowed to exercise their Constitutional right to protest while maintaining physical distance.

Ms Ansbro continued

“We’re concerned that recently protesters have been escorted away from protests and prevented from speaking to journalists. While the necessity for restricting some of our rights in the current context is evident, the restrictions must be equally applied, regularly reviewed and proportionate to the risk. Where a protest is small and complying with principles of physical distancing, as we saw in Cork and Dingle lately, there is a very good argument that they should be facilitated”.

In the interests of ensuring public understanding of and compliance with the restrictions, and safeguarding against disparity in their enforcement by An Garda Síochána, ICCL urges the government to provide legal clarity on the right to protest under the regulations as soon as possible.

ICCL reiterates our call on the government and gardaí to carry out a human rights impact assessment before any new extension of garda powers is announced. This assessment should determine whether all measures meet the necessity and proportionality requirements to restrict fundamental human rights, including the right to protest.

ICCL underlines our support for the government’s efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 and we exhort people to adhere to the public health measures.

ENDS/

Add Your Voice to the call for Human Rights to inform the government response to the pandemic

See full position paper here: https://www.iccl.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ICCL-Protest-and-the-Emergency-Health-Regulations.pdf

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: Doireann Ansbro doireann.ansbro@iccl.ie

For media queries: Sinéad Nolan: sinead.nolan@iccl.ie 087 4157162

Sample letter seeking preservation of CCTV footage

DATE

Private & Confidential

ADDRESS

Re: Insert time and location

Dear X,

We are requesting that CCTV footage from X time on Y date be preserved and a copy of same released to me.

We are making this request under Chapters 2 and 3 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and Counsel (General Data Protection Regulation).

We are obliged for your assistance in this matter and we would be obliged if you could acknowledge this correspondence.

Yours sincerely,

________________________________

Guidance Note- Attached letter should be address to all parties relevant. For example not only shop owners but relevant security company as well. Asking correspondence is acknowledged is important and sending by registered post and/or email is important,

ICCL launches Know Your Rights guide for protesters

25 January 2020

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties today launched the 8^th installment in its Know Your Rights series, a guide for protesters.

Doireann Ansbro, ICCL’s Senior Research and Policy Officer, compiled the guide with input from protesters, law enforcement officials and legal professionals working in the area of protest rights. She said:

“The right to protest has always been a fundamental part of ensuring positive change in Ireland. With the range of challenges we face today from climate change to the housing crisis, protesters are as active as ever and their voices as important. It’s vital that both protest groups and public order police understand what the right to protest involves.”

The launch is to be followed by a private training session for protest leaders which will focus on protesters’ rights before, during and after a protest, and particularly what to do in case of arrest.

The booklet is accompanied by a pocket-sized foldable guide for protesters.

Ms Ansbro said:

“During our national consultation with protesters in 2019, there was a real thirst for information about protesters’ rights, for example, when gardaí can legitimately restrict a protest, or what to do if arrested for protesting. This booklet aims to answer some of those questions. At the training session this afternoon, we also hope to empower protest leaders to bring this kind of information back to their various groups.”

Mr Brian Storan, a barrister, will be one of the trainers. Mr Storan has worked to defend protest rights for 10 years. He said:

“The right to protest is the lifeblood of democracy. There is a delicate balance in working to stay on the right side of the criminal law in exercising the high constitutional and European Convention Human Right to protest peacefully. We must fight in the courts to keep the modalities of protests meaningful.”
ENDS/

Notes:

Find the guide here: https://www.iccl.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Know-Your-Rights-Protest.pdf

Print out our pocket guide for protesters: https://www.iccl.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Z-Card-Protest-Rights.pdf

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:

Doireann Ansbro doireann.ansbro@iccl.ie

For media queries:

Sinéad Nolan: sinead.nolan@iccl.ie 087 4157162

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Protest Under Fire: How Dissent is Silenced

For the third year running, ICCL is hosting a panel at the Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival. This year, we’re focusing on protest rights.

Where? Science Gallery Dublin, Pearse St.

When? Saturday 28th September 4:30pm

To register click here

The right to protest is one of the most important human rights issues globally. Threats to the right to protest manifest themselves in different ways throughout different regions, some protesters face military backlash, others face greater electronic surveillance, and some face a shrinking civil space for opposition and dissent more generally. This panel gathers three human rights defenders from Ireland and abroad to discuss the current trends in protest, the threats to the right to protest which they face, and how civil society can work to protect this vital human right.

Speakers:

Cormac McAleer, Chairman (outgoing) of Save Our Sperrins (SOS), Co. Tyrone.

Save Our Sperrins is an environmental interest group based in the heart of the Sperrins in County Tyrone. They advocate for environmentally responsible planning in the public interest. In recent months Cormac and others have been subject to threats and intimidation in connection with protesting the activities of a Canadian goldmining project in the Sperrins Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

Svetlana Glushkova, Reporter, Kazakhstan.

Svetlana Glushkova is a correspondent with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Kazakh Service and Current Time. She covers a wide range of human rights related issues and has been arrested numerous times and beaten by police officers during the course of her work.

Edward Horgan, peace activist, Co. Limerick.

Dr. Edward Horgan, a retired UN peacekeeper, took a constitutional case against the Irish Government over US military use of Shannon airport. He is the chairperson of Veterans for Peace Ireland, International Secretary of the Irish Peace and Neutrality Alliance, and a peace activist with Shannonwatch. Protests at Shannon are frequently targetted by An Garda Síochána, and members have reported harassment, arrests without a legal basis, and lack of follow-up on complaints. Dr. Horgan tried but failed to arrest G. W. Bush at Shannon airport (mea cupla) and has himself been arrested on a number of occasions.

The panel will be chaired by Doireann Ansbro, ICCL’s Senior Research and Policy Officer.

For more information on the festival, see http://smashingtimes.ie/centrefortheartsandhumanrights/dublinartsandhumanrightsfestival/

Preliminary report: ICCL National Consultation with Protesters

26 June 2019

ICCL travelled to Cork, Ennis and Dublin between 19 and 22 June to meet with environmental activists, anti-war protesters, anti-eviction groups, and activists living in Direct Provision. We had individual meetings with some groups and we also met with representatives of An Garda Síochána and relevant oversight bodies.

It is clear to ICCL that there is a wide gap between the stated position of the Garda with regard to protecting the rights to protest, and the experiences of many of the groups involved in organising a wide range of demonstrations and protests. The lack of clear and transparent information about police policy and training, and the lack of public data about the use of legal powers and the use of force present serious weaknesses in the Irish approach to managing protests.

The salient point for us has been that, while the government and An Garda Síochána are supportive of large protests taking place on the main thoroughfares of Ireland, when it comes to protesters living on the margins of society or protesting outside of the media spotlight, the garda and state response can be much more heavy-handed.

Read the full report and our recommendations here

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ICCL highlights urgent concerns for the right to protest following national consultation

26 June 2019

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), having engaged last week in a national consultation with protest groups, is today reporting serious and urgent concerns in how the Irish state deals with protest and dissent.

We have been informed that activists living in Direct Provision deal with retribution up to and including the with-holding of food and benefits for holding protests, and that housing activists arrested at evictions have been subjected to degrading treatment such as strip-searching.

ICCL travelled to Cork, Ennis and Dublin between 19 and 22 June to meet with environmental activists, anti-war protesters, anti-eviction groups, and activists living in Direct Provision. We also met with representatives of An Garda Síochána and relevant oversight bodies.

Director of ICCL, Liam Herrick, said:

“The salient point for us has been that, while the government and An Garda Síochána are supportive of large protests taking place on the main thoroughfares of Ireland, when it comes to protesters living on the margins of society or protesting outside of the media spotlight, the garda and state response can be much more heavy-handed”.

It is clear to ICCL that there is a wide gap between the stated position of the Garda with regard to protecting the rights to protest, and the experiences of many of the groups involved in organising a wide range of demonstrations and protests.

The lack of clear and transparent information about police policy and training, and the lack of public data about the use of legal powers and the use of force present serious weaknesses in the Irish approach to managing protests.

We received reports of garda misuse of the Public Order Act (through arresting protesters and later dropping charges), of garda intimidation of protesters (through photography, following cars, harassment, and stop-and-search), of serious deficiencies in GSOC handling of complaints, and of gardaí imposing limits on where people can protest without a clear basis in law.

International standards state that sit-ins and meetings are protected by the right to protest and may extend to private spaces accessible to the public. However, we heard a number of serious specific issues around protests at or near privately owned land – including during evictions and at Direct Provision centres.

We received reports that gardaí themeslves are evicting protesters from squats when media are not present. Protesters have also been arrested from public spaces such as city councils. We received reports that gardaí have subjected those arrested at protests to treatment that interferes with their right to dignity, including psychological trauma, strip-searching and being forced to squat and cough. Arrested protesters have allegedly been encouraged to give statements without lawyers present, and in some cases even denied access to their lawyers.

We are extremely concerned that the rights to assembly, to free expression and to free association are being curtailed by private operators of Direct Provision centres, allegedly with the support of An Garda Síochána. Residents informed us that their meetings have been labelled “illegal”, that people have been escorted in handcuffs to public spaces where they are “allowed” to protest, and that food and benefits have been withheld in response to protests.

ENDS/

Full report and Press Conference:

During the consultation, ICCL travelled with an international expert on the right to protest, Michael Power. Michael will present his report at a press conference in Buswell’s Hotel at 11am on Wednesday 26 June.

The Policing Authority will meet the Garda Commissioner at 2:30pm on 26 June to present their latest report on public order policing.

Notes for editors:

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties is Ireland’s leading independent human rights body. We monitor, educate and campaign to secure all human rights for everyone.

Michael Power is a public interest lawyer, based in South Africa, and a consultant to the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations (INCLO) in its Protest Rights and Policing thematic area. Michael has advised and represented civil society organisations, social movements and activists in various courts and commissions of inquiry in defence of the right to protest, and he has appeared before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the United Nations Human Rights Committee to assist in setting international standards on the right to freedom of association and assembly. More information about Michael can be found here.

For media queries:

Sinéad Nolan: sinead.nolan@iccl.ie 087 4157162

ICCL National Consultation with Protesters

ICCL travelled to Cork, Ennis and Dublin between 19 and 22 June to meet with environmental activists, anti-war protesters, anti-eviction groups, and activists living in Direct Provision. We also met with representatives of An Garda Síochána and relevant oversight bodies.

Here’s a video report of the Dublin leg of our conference:

Click here to read more

We cannot do this without you. Please consider joining ICCL.

ICCL publishes 2018 Annual Report

Dublin, 16 May 2019

Read our full annual report by following this link.

Referendum Campaigns

ICCL had a busy year in 2018, not least because of our campaigns in two seminal referendums – the referendum to repeal the 8^th, and the referendum to remove blasphemy from the Constitution. You can read about these campaigns on p15 and p21.

In order to comply with referendum rules, we used our membership fees to fund both. We quite literally could not have done it without our members and we are very grateful indeed for their continued support. You can join ICCL here: iccl.ie/join

ICCL staff members Sinéad Nolan and Elizabeth Farries at the ICCL offices on
International Women’s Day 2018

Outside of the referendums, we ran a number of other important campaigns.

Garda Reform

We made significant progress in our 40+-year quest for garda reform with the publication of the Kilpatrick report. The Commission on the Future of Policing echoed many of the recommendations in our report, and we continue to closely monitor implementation of same in 2019. Read more on p12.

Alyson Kilpatrick at the launch of ICCL’s ground breaking guide to implementing human rights reform of Gardai.

Transitional Justice

ICCL made a significant contribution to the struggle for justice for survivors of institutional abuse. We called for a full exhumation at Tuam, as well as the immediate ratification of the UN Convention on Enforced Disappearances. We also made a submission to the Department of Health on their proposed deprivation of liberty legislation. Read more on p14.

Protest sign at Tuam Mother and Baby Home: You cannot silence the children from the graves

Defending Activism

We were proud to be able to support both protesters and artists as they clamoured for human rights and were met with a heavy-handed state response. Our campaign to protect activism and civil society has become a cornerstone of our policy in 2019. Read more on p19.

ICCL commissioned Garreth Joyce to paint a mural for REPEAL (above) in solidarity with Project Arts Centre when the Charities Regulator order they take down Maser’s iconic Repeal mural.

Your Privacy Rights

Ireland is now a global technology hub and with advances on that front come serious threats to our rights. Read all about our programme of work on privacy and surveillance from p22.