direct provision Archives - Irish Council for Civil Liberties

State risking human rights obligations, should return to policing by consent

13 May 2020

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties has said the State must more clearly demonstrate that it is taking into account its human rights obligations in its response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under the Irish Constitution, the European Convention of Human Rights and international human rights standards to which the State is a party, rights can be restricted for public health reasons, but only where the most minimal restrictions possible are used, and their necessity is demonstrated.

ICCL today wrote to the Minister for Health to urge him to demonstrate that the government is taking these obligations into account in its response to the pandemic, in particular before any decision to amend or extend the considerably expanded Garda powers of enforcement on 18 May.

ICCL’s Executive Director, Liam Herrick, said

“During the first phases of the public health restrictions on our rights, government and gardaí operated by consent – with high levels of successful compliance.

The expansion of police powers with the threat of arrest, huge fines and imprisonment hanging over the population is an extreme measure which must be justified. The Government must show that these powers are necessary to achieve the public health aims and that consent, advice and guidance are not sufficient. In fact, we note that the World Health Organisation has clearly stated coercion can be counter-productive in achieving public health goals during the pandemic.”

The public health needs are now changing. With the easing of measures, questions of essential work and essential travel will become more complex, and we believe the time has clearly come to remove these extraordinary police powers. If the Government has evidence to the contrary it should make its case before the Oireachtas and the people.

ICCL is calling for a full return to policing by consent and not coercion.

Many other human rights issues have arisen during the pandemic, either as a direct result of action by the State, or through a lack of adequate action.

The treatment of certain, already marginalised, communities could constitute violations of the right to equal treatment. People living in Direct Provision have not been facilitated to comply with social distancing, and in some cases may have been subjected to arbitrary detention.

Other communities living in congregated settings continue to be of concern and we believe more must be done to ensure these communities are protected.

The roll-out of a contact-tracing app continues apace. ICCL believes that questions remain about the efficacy of such an app and how the app will address privacy and data protection concerns. Publication of the app’s Data Protection Impact Assessment, source code and design specifications would go a long way to answer these questions and assuage any public concerns about the app. This is why ICCL has joined a group of experts calling for publication of the same. The app’s uptake will be proportional to the public’s trust in the app.

Spit hoods, full hoods which are used to forcibly cover a person’s head, were introduced and their use is now widespread. Use of these hoods could potentially constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. The normalisation of instruments such as these, as well as the normalisation of armed policing, is deeply concerning from a human rights perspective.

ENDS/

Notes for editors:

For information on derogation from rights, see article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx

See our letter to Minister Harris: https://www.iccl.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/200513-ICCL-letter-to-Simon-Harris.pdf

See ICCL and other organisations’ call for a human rights impact assessment: https://www.iccl.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/CSOs-letter-to-Taoiseach-calling-for-HRIA.pdf

See our joint letter to the Minister for Justice Caherciveen Direct Provision centre: https://www.iccl.ie/news/covid-and-direct-provision-joint-letter-to-the-department-of-justice/

See our joint letter regarding the HSE app: https://www.iccl.ie/news/hse-app-experts-and-public-need-to-see-details/

See ICCL’s letter to the Garda Commissioner re spit hoods: https://www.iccl.ie/iccl-letter-to-garda-commissioner-re-spit-hoods/

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties is Ireland’s oldest independent human rights monitoring organisation. We monitor, educate and campaign for all human rights for everyone.

For comment: Liam Herrick liam.herrick@iccl.ie

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

Letter to Minister Flanagan: concerns in relation to the situation in The Skellig Star Hotel

ICCL with other organisations have written to the Minister of Justice this afternoon calling for the closure of the Direct Provision Centre in Cahersiveen.

We believe the hotel there is unfit accommodation for people seeking international protection during the Covid-19 emergency. We are concerned the numbers of those testing positive for Covid-19 will continue to rise in a vicious circle until the Department of Justice closes this centre and provides proper own door accommodation for families and households. We were seriously concerned that a letter from the HSE was sent to residents at Caherciveen yesterday appearing to blame the residents for the rise in Covid-19 in the centre for not engaging in social distancing. Social distancing is self-evidently impossible in a place where people are forced to share facilities.

We are also concerned at reports from residents that the hotel was not cleaned properly following the removal of individuals who tested positive for Covid-19. We believe the government is not fulfilling its obligations under the EU Reception Directive to protect the physical and mental health of those seeking international protection in this country.

COVID and Direct Provision: Joint Letter to the Department of Justice

ICCL with IRC and Nasc have sent a joint letter to the Department of Justice expressing concerns that confining all residents of the Direct Provision Centre in Caherciveen to the Centre may constitute arbitrary detention and/ or discrimination. The new powers of detention under the Emergency Health Act do not provide for the detention of an entire institution but only for individuals with particular safeguards, including a right to review.

If residents are being told on an ‘advice’ only basis that they shouldn’t leave this has not been made clear by management. We have been told by residents that they believe they are not allowed to leave the premises. Residents also reported that gates were padlocked.

ICCL contributes to shadow report for the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Dublin, 28 November 2019

On 2 and 3 December, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination will examine Ireland. Ireland has signed up to the UN Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and so it must periodically submit a report to the Committee and answer the Committee’s subsequent questions. You can watch this session online here.

ICCL contributed to what is known as a shadow report. It’s the alternative to the State version of events. The report was compiled by the Irish Network Against Racism (INAR), of which ICCL is a member.

Here are some of the key observations we make:

There is a need for a more robust human rights structure around racism, to include a renewed and inclusive National Action Plan Against Racism.

The Migrant Integration Strategy published by Government in 2017 is welcome, but does not go far enough on anti-racism, and ignores the maturity of Ireland as a diverse society and our indigenous ethnic minority- Irish Travellers.

The Direct Provision (DP) system for supporting International Protection applicants remains largely without a legislative footing. We call on the State to close down the current system of Direct Provision and replace it with a regulated, planned humane asylum system which focuses on integrating asylum seekers into society.

We look forward to publication of the review of the Incitement to Hatred Act 1989 by Government which was promised in 2011. But new legislation is urgently needed to address hate crime and online hate speech. The increase in online hate speech in Ireland is a cause for deep concern.

The current housing crisis in Ireland creates enormous challenges for vulnerable migrant and minority communities who experience discrimination in accessing private sector housing, and often experience poorer housing conditions and overcrowding.

Read the full report here:

INAR-ALTERNATIVE-REPORT-to-CERD-WEB-1 Download

ICCL calls on Noel Grealish TD to clarify comments made at Oughterard meeting

Dublin, 12 September 2019

Ireland has a duty under international law to provide protection to those who are fleeing persecution and all those claiming asylum have a right to a fair hearing. To offer protection to members of one group over another would be clearly discriminatory and any suggestion of such practice should be strongly and widely condemned.

Everybody has the right to freedom of speech but there are limits where that speech might constitute hate speech. Public representatives should be mindful of promoting a society which is respectful of everyone. Racist speech from an elected representative can never be accepted. In light of this, ICCL calls on Deputy Grealish to immediately clarify his comments last night and if the reports of his comments are accurate to offer an immediate apology.

There is currently no appropriate law to deal with hate crime in Ireland. Recent, high-profile instances of hate crime in Galway and around the country underline the importance of our call for legislation against hate crime to be drawn up as a matter of urgency.

Sign the petition to outlaw hate crime here: https://my.uplift.ie/petitions/love-not-hate-unite-to-legislate-against-hate-crime

Join ICCL in the fight against hate! iccl.ie/join

ICCL publishes follow-up report to UN Committee Against Torture

ICCL Follow-up report to UNCAT

This report by the ICCL was submitted to the United Nations Committee Against Torture (CAT) on 26 November 2018 and forms part of the process of ‘follow-up’ to the CAT’s second set of Concluding Observations on Ireland, published in August 2017. The CAT designated three of the recommendations in its August 2017 Concluding Observations as ‘follow-up’ issues, requiring a response from the Irish Government within one year.

In this report, the ICCL:

Demands that Ireland ratify the UN Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture and create a National Preventive Mechanism that independently inspects all places of detention in Ireland, including de facto detention in health and social care settings, and in Direct Provision.
Calls for swift changes to the powers and functions of the Garda complaints mechanism, and criticises the secrecy that characterises many investigations into alleged Garda misconduct.
Rejects the Government’s repeated claim that it knows of ‘no credible evidence’ that systematic torture or ill-treatment, or criminal abuse, was perpetrated in Magdalene Laundries and calls for a truth-telling process, and proper accountability and redress.

The ICCL’s report to the CAT in 2017 contributed to the CAT’s Concluding Observations along with the reports of numerous other NGOs working in Ireland.

The Irish Government’s Follow-up Report to the CAT was published in August 2018. This report by the ICCL provides further information to the CAT in relation to the three ‘follow-up’ issues.

Ratify OPCAT and allow inspection of direct provision centres: ICCL

Dublin, 26 June 2018

Ratify OPCAT and allow inspection of direct provision centres: ICCL

On International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) is calling for the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture (OPCAT). We are also calling for the establishment of a National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), as per the OPCAT and in consultation with civil society, which would inspect and report on conditions in all places of deprivation of liberty in the State. Ireland signed up to OPCAT in 2007 and is the only EU country which has not ratified the treaty.

Director of ICCL Liam Herrick said:

“this is an urgent call that we’re making, given the 2015 findings of the European Committee on the Prevention of Torture that there was evidence of ill-treatment in Garda custody. Indeed last week’s collapse of the trial of Damien McLaughlin has highlighted the need for better protection of suspects’ rights whilst in custody, not only to ensure the rights of innocent people, but also to ensure that cases like this do not collapse under the weight of questionable evidence.”

The OPCAT and NPM would also allow for inspection of places such as psychiatric institutions, direct provision centres and nursing homes, all places where people are routinely deprived of their liberty, sometimes arbitrarily.

Mr Herrick said:

“In a country such as Ireland, with such a chequered, sad history of arbitrarily depriving people of their freedom, it is urgent that we begin to allow independent oversight and inspection of places where people are detained, arbitrarily or otherwise”.

ENDS/

Notes for editors:

In 2017, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission commissioned research and made evidence-based recommendations for Ireland to ratify the OPCAT:

https://www.ihrec.ie/app/uploads/2017/09/Ireland-and-the-Optional-Protocol-to-the-UN-Convention-against-Torture.pdf