Government recommends appointments to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission

The Cabinet has today (4 July 2023) noted and accepted the recommendations of the Public Appointments Service (PAS) for the appointment of six candidates to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC), in line with the process laid out in Section 13 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Act 2014.

The Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Mr. Roderic O’Gorman who brought the recommendations to Government said:

These recommendations, which resulted from an independent Public Appointments Service process, will now go forward for approval to the Houses of the Oireachtas and the President. The appointments process for members of the Commission is governed by Section 13(1)(b) of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014. The Act provides that members of the Commission shall be appointed by the President (a) on the advice of the government, and (b) following the passing of a resolution of each House of the Oireachtas recommending the appointment.

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission is Ireland’s national human rights institution and equality body. It is an independent public body with a mandate established under the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014 to protect and promote human rights and equality. Additionally, it seeks to promote the development of a culture of respect for human rights, equality and intercultural understanding in the state. Its mission is “to build a just and inclusive society that protects and promotes human rights and equality in Ireland.”

In accordance with the 2014 Act, the Public Appointments Service recently undertook a selection process for appointment six members of the Commission.

For appointment:

• Dr Andrew Forde is a senior civil servant with extensive national and international human rights experience. Dr Forde is currently head of Rural Regeneration at the Department of Rural and Community Development and holds both LLM and PhD degrees in international human rights law, with specific expertise focused on the European Convention on Human Rights. Dr Forde is also a Visiting Fellow at the Irish Centre for Human Rights and writes extensively on matters related to human rights in Europe
• Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC FRSA is an international human rights lawyer and barrister, specialising in human rights law, public law, inquests, community care, prison law and media law. Since 2005, Caoilfhionn has acted in many landmark human rights cases before the European Court of Human Rights, United Nations bodies and other international tribunals, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and courts in the UK and a number of other jurisdictions. Caoilfhionn is the current Special Rapporteur on Child Protection, appointed to this role by the Irish Government in January 2023
• Colin Harvey is a Professor of Human Rights Law at Queen’s University Belfast and Director of the Human Rights Centre. Prof Harvey has served as a Commissioner on the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, has taught human rights law for almost 30 years and has written and engaged extensively on human rights law locally and globally
• Eoin Ronayne is the Chairperson of Waterford Area Partnership Company and Special Projects Adviser in Fórsa. Eoin has an extensive background as a senior trade union official and was engaged by Fórsa on a range of operational projects and policy delivery for the Irish Congress of Trades Union (ICTU). Eoin has been a member of the ICTU Executive for many years and is also the Ireland Executive Committee member of the European Federation of Public Service Union (EPSU)
• Noeline Blackwell is a solicitor, litigator advocate and manager with a wide experience of human rights standards, operations, practices and challenges. Noeline is the current CEO of Dublin Rape Crisis Centre since 2016 and was the Director General (CEO) of FLAC 2005-2016. Noeline’s previous board memberships include the International Federation of Human rights, Front Line Defenders, Immigrant Council of Ireland, and Amnesty International Ireland
• Dr Salome Mbugua has been a Commission member on the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission since 2018 and has extensive experience in leadership, senior management, strategic planning, personnel management, project development, implementation, organisational development, budget monitoring, and gender mainstreaming. Dr Mbugua is a founder of two equality based organisations, AkiDwA and Wezesha and is an advocate of human rights, gender equality, and diversity inclusion