NGO Consultation on IHREC accreditation – We Need Your Input
The International Coordinating Committee of National Human Rights Institutions (ICC) assesses each NHRI every five years to ensure their effectiveness in promoting and protecting human rights. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission will be assessed in November 2015.
The Paris Principles
The Paris Principles adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993 set out the international benchmarks that NHRI’s are required to meet in six key areas:
- Mandate and competence: a broad mandate, based on universal human rights norms and standards;
- Autonomy from Government;
- Independence guaranteed by statute or Constitution;
- Pluralism;
- Adequate resources; and
- Adequate powers to promote and protect human rights.
NHRIs which meet these standards are awarded an ‘A’ status that gives them an important role the work of the UN Human Rights Council and other UN human rights mechanisms.
The NGO voice – what do we need from you?
The ICC’s Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) would like to hear from Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and Civil Society Organisations as part of the accreditation of the IHREC. You can contribute by submitting reports to the SCA by 16 July 2015.
We hope that you will play a part in this important process. Please note that the SCA will share your response with us prior to the session in November 2015 so that we are able to comment on it as part of the accreditation procedure.
For more information you can contact the National Institutions and Regional Mechanisms Section, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, by email at: vstefanov@ohchr.org, sshahidzadeh@ohchr.org, nifellow2@ohchr.org, and nfellow4@ohchr.org.
More information about the accreditation process is also available on the ICC’s website http://nhri.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/ICCAccreditation/Pages/default.aspx
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission
The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission was established on 1 November 2014 by an Act of the Oireachtas, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014, with a broad remit to protect and promote human rights and equality in Ireland. The 2014 Act merged the former Irish Human Rights Commission and the former Equality Authority into a single enhanced body.
The Commission accounts directly to the Oireachtas for our statutory functions. In terms of financial accountability, the Commission now has its own Oireachtas ‘Vote’ – this means that through the accounting officer, who is the Director of the organisation, the IHREC accounts directly to the Oireachtas for its financial expenditure, independent of any Minister of Government.
As an independent NHRI our work has an important international dimension. We act as a bridge between Ireland and the international human rights system. Compliance with the Paris Principles is central to our work and we will be aiming to maintain our ‘A’ status at our accreditation review in November 2015.
If anyone would like more information on our areas of work and our responsibilities in order to make a submission to the SCA then please contact us at info@ihrec.ie.