Press Release – for immediate release
24 October 2012
Ireland’s independent human rights watchdog, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), has welcomed the appointment of a key signatory to its Hear Our VoicesCivil Society Charter as the Chair of the Government’s Convention on the Constitution.
Reacting to Taoiseach Enda Kenny’s announcement that Tom Arnold, Chief Executive of Concern Worldwide, has accepted this position, ICCL Director Mr Mark Kelly said:
“On 9 July 2012, Tom Arnold signed up to the Civil Society Charter for a Constitutional Convention in his capacity as Chief Executive of Concern Worldwide. The Charter, which has been signed by Concern Worldwide and another 78 civil society organisations, calls for the Convention to operate in a manner that is participative, inclusive and meaningful. It places particular emphasis on the need to facilitate meaningful input into the Convention by civil society organisations and those on the margins of society.”
“We are looking forward to working with Tom Arnold in his new capacity as Chair of the Convention on the Constitution to breathe life into the civil society principles that he championed last summer”, Mr Kelly added.
Mark Kelly is available for interview and further comment
For more information, please contact:
Walter Jayawardene
Communications Manager
Irish Council for Civil Liberties
9-13 Blackhall Place
Dublin 7
Ireland
Tel. + 353 1 799 4504
Mob: +353 87 9981574
E-mail: wjayawardene@iccl.ie
Note to editors:
Further information, including the full list of 79 signatories to the Hear Our VoicesCharter, and the text of the Hear Our Voices Civil Society Charter for a Constitutional Convention, to which Tom Arnold subscribed can be found at: www.hearourvoices.net