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The
October Fifth (1968 Civil Rights Veterans and Supporters)
Association (OFA), has expressed its concern at the
resignations, this week, of two members of the Human
Rights Commission. The group stated, “Regretfully,
we feel we must concur with one of the dissident commissioners
who described the much heralded HRC as “a toothless
organization”. This development must surely undermine
the work of this much-needed commission, and bring
into question the effectiveness of this and other
institutions established under the much-hyped Good
Friday Agreement, which falls far short of what was
on offer at Sunningdale in 1974.”
The
statement continued: “Our association is confident
that the presence of such figures as Ms. Inez McCormack
and Professor Christine Bell on the HRC brought an
air of reality from grass-roots level to that body.
Alas, their resignations reveal that there is indeed
much cause for concern for progressive-minded people
who wish to advance the cause of human rights and
civil liberties. Their action has come as a shock
not only to scores of community organizations, but
to the media and even the Chief Commissioner himself,
Professor Brice Dickson. That the HRC do not seem
to have been aware even of the possibility of such,
would suggest that other commissioners must not have
been listening closely enough to what such well-respected
figures as McCormack and Bell were articulating. Those
who remain clearly did not appreciate the depth of
feeling on urgent and diverse matters which led to
these highly unexpected resignations.”
The
OFA said, “Both women did not go silently, but
rightly spoke out, explaining that their decision
to quit the HRC was based on their belief that its
independence and effectiveness had been compromised.
Many will share their disappointment at the commission’s
apparent inability to genuinely protect and promote
the body’s officially-endorsed and proclaimed
objectives. “
In
their letters to the Secretary of State, Dr. John
Reid, their serious concerns were highlighted. The
OFA warns: “Reid’s reaction, no doubt will
be to see it all as a storm in a tea-cup, which it
most certainly is not, in so far as the hopes of countless
thousands of citizens have been seriously undermined,
if not totally dashed by such high-profile resignations.”
The
OFA insists: “Independence is crucial if the
HRC is to be taken seriously. It should never be compromised,
especially at such a crucial time for the Six Counties
and Ireland as a whole. Ms. Mc Cormack, as regional
secretary of Unison, is not one who exists in a vacuum,
but is in daily contact with ordinary people and their
problems. Before Dr. John Reid tries to sweep these
resignations under the carpet, let him either agree
or disagree with these resigned commissioners’
assertion that at the inception of the HRC they, and
we all, has been led to believe that this body would
have the power to demand that government departments
would impart information on human rights cases. These
resignations show that this has never been the case.
But the GFA supposedly asserted and promoted such
positive inter-action between officialdom and the
HRC.”
Both
former commissioners went on to state that the government
withheld such powers in its own self-interest, thus
rendering the body “toothless”, in their
opinion. The civil rights’ veterans group noted:
“To state that the HRC does not use the resources
and powers that it does have, Ms. McCormack exposes
major failings, as well as issues of concern to most
intelligent members of the public. One of her specific
examples related to the current debate about the Human
Rights Bill.”
In
her letter of resignation Ms. McCormack wrote: “Political
parties and civil society are just at the beginning
of an exploration on how best to engage in the debate
on a bill of rights. This difficult, serious process
needs time and space. The commission, however, in
my view, still is pursuing an approach to this debate
that risks polarizing it and rushing it, thereby closing
its potential as a process that can assist in building
peace”.
The
OFA continued: “All of us must be concerned that
both former commissioners expressed the view that
the HRC lacked direction and was not “delivering
practical change”. Ms. McCormack stressed, “It
doesn’t have sufficient resources, but even with
what it has, it is not making a difference.”
The
OFA added, “As a trade unionist she naturally
placed emphasis on many issues such as health, education
and work which had huge cross-community consensus.
She alleged, “Instead of the debate focusing
on these which would have built consensus, the commission
has focused on issues of division.”
“Ms.
McCormack, who has a high profile well beyond the
trade-union movement, must be listened to when she
states: “We honourably believe resigning is the
right thing to do – the debate on human rights
is more important than protecting an institution”.
The October Fifth Association fully endorses those
sentiments, and will be writing to the Chief Commissioner
to express our grave concerns.
The
Chief Commissioner, Professor Brice Dickson, has been
a frequent visitor to Derry. He has jointly shared
platforms with such local civil rights veterans as
Mr. Ivan Cooper, a former Minister of Community Relations
in the ill-fated power-sharing assembly of 1974, the
SDLP ’s Mrs. Brig Rodgers MLA, and Mr. Fionnbarra
Ó Dochartaigh, a co-founder of NICRA in1967.
Yesterday Mr. O’Dochartaigh, the OFA’s hon.
secretary, who has known Mr. Dickson for many years,
commented: “It would appear that we have been
collectively conned, yet again. Where is the valour
if those under the flag of St. George permit merely
a toothless dragon to enter the public arena? Let’s
hope that it has enough fire left in its belly to
defend the public interest. We will be contacting
Prof. Dickson because we now have grave reservations
about the supposed autonomous claims for the HRC within
the Good Friday Agreement. One should view these resignations
as a wake-up call for all of us. Was this not surely
the specific intention behind these resignations?”,
he concluded.
The
OFA is calling on local people to contact the HRC, which
can be e-mailed via
NIHRC@belfast.org.uk
The civil rights veterans cordially invite responses
via oct5th_vets68@hotmail.com
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