| For a summary of Ireland’s review at the second cycle please click here. |
12th UPR session
Date of review: 6 October 2011
Date of report adoption: March 2012
Working Group report: A/HRC/19/9
| Summary
Recommendations: Deepen the Reform of the law on same sex marriage and change the concept of traditional family as enshrined in the Constitution; Amend Article 37 of the 1998 Employment Equality Act in order to prevent such discrimination against homosexual and unmarried parents. Response: Under consideration until March 2012. |
I. Key issues/recommendations identified by NGOs
- Treat same-sex couples equally with opposite sex couples;
- Ensure recognition and respect for each person’s self-defined gender identity;
- Address school bullying on grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity.
II. Excerpts from input reports
National report
III. Background and framework
A. General political structure
The Constitution of Ireland
7. The Government, which came to power on 6 March 2011, intends to convene a Constitutional Convention to consider the need for comprehensive constitutional reform, including consideration of the following specific issues: provision for same-sex marriage; amendment of the clauses on women in the home and insertion of a clause to encourage greater participation of women in public life; and removal of the offence of blasphemy from the Constitution.
IV. Promotion and protection of human rights
A. Equality and non-discrimination
63. The Employment Equality Acts and the Equal Status Acts prohibit discrimination on nine grounds against those in employment, seeking access to employment or participating in vocational training, and those seeking goods and services. These grounds are gender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, religious belief, age, disability, race and membership of the Traveller community.
F. Right to privacy, marriage and family life
Civil Partnership
90. The Government is committed to equality for all people. The Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010 provides for the registration of civil partners and for the consequences of that registration. It also provides for the rights and obligations of cohabitants. It creates in Irish law a scheme under which a gay or lesbian couple can formally declare their allegiance to each other, register their partnership, commit themselves to a range of duties and responsibilities, and at the same time, are afforded a series of protections in the course of their partnership.
91. Same-sex couples now have additional protections and new rights to succeed to the property of each other. In the event of dissolution of the partnership, there will be protections in place for a dependent partner. The tax code is being amended to bring it into line with the new provisions.
Transgender issues
92. The acquired gender of transgender persons is currently recognised in many official dealings with the State, such as the provision of passports, driving licences and in social welfare, healthcare and revenue matters. In 2010, an advisory group was established to advise on further legal recognition of transgender persons and is expected to submit its report to the Minister for Social Protection shortly. The prohibition of discrimination on the gender and disability grounds under employment equality law also prohibits adverse treatment of persons based on their transgender status.
Summary of stakeholders’ information
II. Promotion and protection of human rights on the ground
B. Implementation of international human rights obligations, taking into account applicable international humanitarian law
1. Equality and non-discrimination
18. JS1 stated that the Employment Equality Act 1998, by facilitating active discrimination, impacted disproportionately on people, such as LGBT people and single parents, while IPRT recommended that this Act should include discrimination on the grounds of a criminal conviction.
4. Right to privacy, marriage and family life
47. Notwithstanding the existence of civil partnership for same sex couples, JS1 recommended that Ireland introduce full civil marriage for same-sex couples. Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN) also raised issues related to the rights of children being parented by same-sex couples.
48. Irish-HRC recommended that Ireland urgently introduce legislation to ensure full legal recognition of transgender persons in their acquired gender.
8. Right to education and to participate in the cultural life of the community
68. ERI reported on early school leavers and indicated that the Education (Welfare) Act 2000 failed to specify how alternative educational settings should function and enforced no measures for their official regulation and made a recommendation in this regard. GLEN referred to bullying against LGBT youth at schools despite existing policies.
III. References to SOGI during the Working Group review
A. Presentation by the State under review
10. [Ireland] reiterated that it was never acceptable for any government to treat national or religious or ethnic minorities as inferior; or to discriminate against women generally or gay men or gay women; or to discriminate against children and to fail to recognise their vulnerability; or to exclude disabled persons from inclusion; or to repress freedom of expression because it feared or disagreed with the speakers’ opinion or where such opinion constitutes incitement to hatred.
B. Interactive dialogue and responses by the State under review
76. Switzerland noted that Irish legislation prohibits discrimination against employees; nevertheless certain medical, religious and educational institutions are entitled to turn down application forms from homosexual and unmarried people.
IV. Conclusions and/or recommendations
106. The following recommendations will be examined by Ireland which will provide responses in due time, but no later than the 19th session of the Human Rights Council in March 2012:
106.44. Deepen the Reform of the law on same sex marriage and change the concept of traditional family as enshrined in the Constitution (Spain);
106.45. Amend Article 37 of the 1998 Employment Equality Act in order to prevent such discrimination against homosexual and unmarried parents (Switzerland).
V. Adoption of the Report
The report of the Working Group was adopted at the 19th regular session of the Human Rights Council in March 2012.
Statements by States and other stakeholders
COC Netherlands, ILGA-Europe and GLEN
Ireland has a young but impressive history when it comes to addressing human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. In 1993 consenting sexual conduct between men was decriminalised. In the same year sexual orientation was included as a protected ground in the Unfair Dismissals Act. In years following sexual orientation became a ground for seeking asylum, became a protected ground against discrimination in employment, goods and services. In 2010 same-sex couples received rights to civil partnership, receiving same rights as married couples across a comprehensive range of areas including tax immigration and social welfare.. These measures have allowed LGBT citizens to become more visible in society, to call for their rights to be protected and have fostered a climate of social acceptance.
Whilst we welcome the progress delivered to date by this Government, we urge the government to address, in light of the UPR review process, through legislation, the legal recognition and support of children in same-sex headed families, as was outlined in the Programme for the Government. The widespread public acceptance and support of civil partnerships nationally can, in this context, be seen as a strong platform on which further change can be build, in particular that relating to LGB-headed families. In this light we welcome Ireland’s commitment, as expressed in the UPR report, to progressing same-sex marriage through the Constitutional convention.
Whilst Ireland has made significant progress on this matter, significant challenges still remain. Children face widespread homophobic bullying in schools; only 46% of LGBT people feels open and supported in the workplace; violence and harassment targeted at the LGBT community remains a daily reality, significantly underreported to the police. In this context it is essential that the government remains committed to promoting full equality of LGBT young people, at school, at the work place, in the family and everywhere else. As pointed out during the UPR process by Switzerland, we remain concerned by legal provisions allowing for discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in certain medical, religious and education institutions and call for legislative reform to remove this.
Transgender people remain particularly vulnerable to discrimination and marginalisation in Irish society. Ireland is one of the few remaining countries in the EU that does not allow for legal gender recognition of transgender persons, despite a High Court ruling in 2007 that this was incompatible with Ireland’s obligation under the European Convention on Human Rights. We call on Ireland to urgently introduce legislation to ensure full and inclusive legal recognition of transgender people in their preferred gender.
Finally, we stand ready to continue work with the government of Ireland to ensure that all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people can enjoy their citizenship in full equality and in fairness.
VI. Further information
UPR Documentation
National report 1 : A | C | E | F | R | S
Compilation of UN information 2 : A | C | E | F | R | S
Corrigendum : A | C | E | F | R | S
Summary of stakeholders’ information 3 : A | C | E | F | R | S
Questions submitted in advance : E
Addendum 1 : E
Addendum 2 : E
Addendum 3 : E