In June 2015, the United Nation’s (UN) Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights assessed Ireland’s performance in protecting basic human rights such as the right to housing, social security, decent work, education and health over the past thirteen years. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (the Committee) monitors States Parties’ compliance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), one of ten core international human rights treaties. Ireland ratified ICESCR in 1989 and June’s review marked Ireland’s third examination by the Committee.
FLAC, along with its Public Interest Law Alliance project coordinated the civil society response to the Committee through two reports, Our Voice, Our Rights published in October 2014 and Our Voice, Our Rights: An Update published in May 2015. Following Ireland’s examination in Geneva, the Committee issued a strong set of Concluding Observations, which called for state action across a range of policy areas. The recommendations of the Committee in large part reflected the concerns expressed in the parallel reports coordinated by FLAC.
While the importance of securing robust recommendations from the Committee cannot be understated, the next phase is key – implementation. While we have seen some progress in terms of implementation of the Committee’s recommendations, much more work remains to be done. Drawing on a number of opportunities which are currently available, this guide suggests a number of ways in which the Committee’s recommendations can be utilised in order to progress their implementation.
A copy of the guide can be accessed here.