Human Rights

A number of leading Irish and international human rights experts will speak at ICEL’s Human Rights Law Conference in partnership with The Irish Centre for Human Rights, University of Galway on Thursday 15 October 2026. The Conference will take place in hybrid format.

FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centres) and ICCL (the Irish Council for Civil Liberties) have raised serious concerns about human rights and equality in Ireland in advance of the United Nations’ Universal Periodic Review (‘UPR’) of the State’s human rights record.

A UN expert has warned that Ireland’s new housing law could leave entire households without support and increase homelessness among vulnerable groups. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) has welcomed the intervention of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to a

Civil society organisations in the UK and Ireland are concerned that the new Council of Europe political declaration on migration released on the 15 May at a Council of Ministers summit in Moldova reflects a growing pattern of political pressure on how human rights are interpreted and applied. While

The UK's human rights institutions have issued a joint statement reaffirming the importance of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the Human Rights Act in protecting fundamental rights.

Ministers are aiming to enact landmark reforms to mental health legislation before Easter following a legislative milestone in the Seanad. The Mental Health Bill 2024 completed committee stage in Seanad Éireann yesterday evening after nearly 20 hours of debate across six sessions.

Destruction in Bat Yam after an Iranian missile strike Credit: Yoav Keren, CC BY-SA 3.0

Organisations dedicated to the advancement of human rights will be eligible to become charities under reforms proposed by the government. The Charities (Amendment) Bill 2023, to be introduced to the Dáil today, includes a series of revisions and updates to the Charities Act 2009, including pr

More than 1,070 members of the legal profession have called on the UK government to press for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the West Bank and to take urgent steps to ensure the UK government does not violate international humanitarian law or aid or assist its violation by others. The letter, or

A Northern Ireland Business and Human Rights Index has been developed by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) in partnership with the Law School at Queen’s University Belfast. NIHRC chief commissioner Alyson Kilpatrick said: “This new Northern Ireland Business and Human R

The Law Society of Ireland has congratulated trainee solicitors Andrea Whelton (Arthur Cox LLP) from Leap, West Cork, Aoibhín O’Connor (Denise Kelleher & Associates Solicitors, Cork) from Ballinhassig, Cork, and Jennifer Ryan (Matheson LLP) from Castletroy, Limerick for progressing

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has provided legal assistance to a disabled woman in a discrimination claim under the Equal Status Acts. The woman alleged that a State body had failed to provide her with transport that would have enabled her to avail of its services on an equal footin

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission have launched their Annual Joint Report, their first since they took over their new roles in respect of Protocol Article 2. It outlines the joint work of the

There must be urgent action to tackle violence against women, human rights experts have said. Today is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, an initiative that calls for action to end all forms of discrimination and gender-based violence against women and girls.

A prominent human rights lawyer jailed in Azerbaijan should be released immediately, the Council of Europe's commissioner for human rights has said. Elchin Sadykov, a well-known human rights defender, was arrested last Saturday alongside one of his clients client, journalist Avaz Zeynalli.