Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. The context of the matter I raise today is that Ireland pays more than €300 million per annum towards the cost of running the United Nations. Within that framework of the United Nations, special rapporteurs are regularly appointed and given a remit to examine and report on a specific human rights matter of broad concern worldwide or a matter specific to a particular country. Examples might include child poverty internationally or specific human rights abuses in a particular country or region. These rapporteurs are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council and they are usually lawyers considered to be independent human rights experts.

According to the UN Human Rights Council, these rapporteurs undertake country visits, act on individual cases of reported violations by sending communications to states, seek information, contribute to the development of international human rights standards, engage in advocacy and so on. These positions are unpaid and there are three-year mandates that can be renewed for a further three years. As of last October, there were 58 such mandates. Given the nature of this role, it is vital these rapporteurs carry out these tasks without fear or favour and are beholden to no master. That is why the positions are unpaid and there is a code of conduct that applies to special rapporteurs binding them to "objectivity and non-selectivity in the consideration of human rights issues, and the elimination of double standards and politicisation".

The reason this objectivity is demanded is very clear and obvious. The conclusions these rapporteurs come to can have significant impacts on the position of the United Nations and the UN Human Rights Council on many controversial matters. It can have a positive and negative impact on the reputations of individual member states and their governments. There should not be any conflicts of interest, and this brings me to the matter I raise today.

Earlier this year, the European Centre for Law and Justice, ECLJ, a well-known and respected non-governmental organisation, NGO, based in Strasbourg, published a report indicating some shocking practices relating to these special rapporteurs. Much of this information was in the public domain but it was gathered by the ECLJ as part of an exhaustive research process it conducted. It found various private foundations, NGOs, state governments and private corporations are spending huge amounts to influence these special rapporteurs and, in some cases, to recruit them in the first place. There were 121 special rapporteurs appointed between 2015 and 2019 and 37 of those received payments totalling $11 million outside any UN control from private foundations and NGOs, including the Ford Foundation, the Open Society Foundation of George Soros and other anonymous donors.

It is a matter of public record that the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty, Mr. Philip Alston, was paid $600,000 by the Open Society Foundation in 2018 and 2019 alone through various grants and yet only declared $5,000 to the United Nations. An Irish lawyer, Professor Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, has held special rapporteur positions while concurrently being the chairperson of an Open Society Foundation project. There are myriad other examples in the report of the European Centre for Law and Justice, which is available on its website.

It seems there has been widespread knowledge of these practices for many years but a culture of omertaseems to have grown, so the publication of the report has caused some stir. The problem is this: the Open Society Foundations, the Ford Foundation and other such groups are not independent and disinterested actors when it comes to certain human rights issues. They often have very particular positions on controversial matters such as marriage rights, the right to life, assisted suicide, religious freedom, religious ethos in education, transgender rights and so on. They spend vast amounts in financing campaigns advancing those views.

Is the Government aware of the ECLJ report to which I have referred? Is it aware of the allegations made about financial influence being exerted over the holders of such positions? Has this Government made any representations in this regard? Is the Irish Government ever consulted when it is proposed to appoint an Irish citizen as a special rapporteur? What monitoring takes place within the Minister of State's Department on the operation of the United Nations Human Rights Council? The Minister of State would surely agree we should insist on proper ethical standards, given Ireland pays more than €300 million per annum towards the cost of running the UN.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir as ucht an t-ábhar seo a ardú inniu. We believe the offices of the UN special rapporteurs receive adequate funding to allow them to implement their important mandates fully and in an independent manner.

As the Senator will be well aware, respect for human rights and the promotion of human rights is, and will continue to be, a cornerstone of our foreign policy. Ireland plays an active role in promoting and protecting human rights at the United Nations, primarily through our consistent engagement in the Human Rights Council in Geneva and at the Third Committee of the General Assembly in New York but also through our membership this term of the UN Security Council.

The UN special procedures, including the special rapporteurs, independent experts and members of the working groups play a critical role in protecting and promoting human rights. They are independent human rights experts with mandates to report and advise on human rights from a thematic or country-specific perspective. The system of special procedures is a central element of the United Nations human rights machinery and covers all human rights, including civil, cultural, economic, political, and social.

The independent status of the mandate holders is crucial for them to be able to fulfil their functions in an impartial manner as guided by the code of conduct adopted by the Human Rights Council. It is a testament to the strength of civil society in Ireland that of 45 thematic and 13 country mandates, five prominent Irish experts are currently serving as special rapporteurs or working group members. These are Ms Mary Lawlor, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; Professor Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, as mentioned by the Senator, who is doing very good work as special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism; Ms Siobhán Mullally, special rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children; Mr. Gerard Quinn, special rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities; and Ms Anita Ramasastry, member of the working group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises.

I am conscious that the international human rights system is facing a triple threat. First, across the world we see growing evidence of conflict and abuses and violations of human rights. In some countries we are seeing a pushback by states against the fundamental concept of universal human rights for all individuals. Second, the Covid-19 pandemic has created additional challenges and, in particular, has severely restricted the opportunities for special rapporteurs to undertake essential country visits. Third, the human rights system of the United Nations is severely underfunded, with the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights receiving only 3.7% of the budget we proportionately pay into that was mentioned by the Senator.

Against this background, Ireland remains committed to supporting the independent mandate of the special rapporteurs and to protecting that mandate in the face of growing pressure from those countries and organisations that would seek to reduce their influence.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response and, of course, I agree with much of what he has said about the need for such special rapporteurs to receive adequate funding and the importance of their role. I question whether they can be as independent as he says when it is a matter of public record, for example, that the Open Society Foundation donated $137,000 to Amnesty International to fund a pro-abortion campaign. Should we not be concerned when organisations that campaign on such issues are making huge payments to supposedly independent special rapporteurs at the UN level.

The Minister of State agrees that if he left office or the Dáil in the morning, as a matter of law now there would need to be a decontamination period before he could take up advocacy in the private sector. In a very similar way we could argue that, as occurred in the case of Professor Ní Aoláin, there should be no question of a person being concurrently a chairperson and, I presume, in the pay of an Open Society Foundation project while also supposedly acting as an independent UN special rapporteur. There is an apparent conflict of interest and the Minister of State's response to me, with all due respect to the Government, does not address it.

I am interested in finding out whether the Government knows about the ECLJ report and if there is anything in the report that worries the Government. Does the Government propose to look at it now in light of what I have brought up? Is the Government consulted when it comes to the appointment of special rapporteurs from this country? In principle, we should be very proud of that. The question is, if there is an apparent conflict of interest, whether the Government will express a view.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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The Senator was a special rapporteur at the Council of Europe.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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I was a rapporteur for a report for a parliamentary assembly. It is a very different matter.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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It is a different forum but it is a similar matter.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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I do not have the same code of objectivity, independence, freedom etc. from all parties. I am a parliamentarian. It is a very different matter. We are political.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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Absolutely.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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An independent special rapporteur cannot be political in that way.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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The Senator's position of special rapporteur is similar, albeit in a different context.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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I was not concurrently funded by any private body. My only salary was my parliamentarian's salary.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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The Senator was in that position with his own views and those of the organisations of which he is a member.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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We are all entitled to our views but we are not entitled to conflicts of interest.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I am not saying they are directly comparable and I am not accusing the Senator of conflicts of interest. To be honest, the Senator in this House has accused people of a conflict of interest and I am not clear exactly what the conflict of interest is.I do not believe he has specified it. He has made allegations that people are in the pay of some organisations while also doing the work of the UN. He has not substantiated those allegations.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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I have; there are several matters on the public record. I mentioned Mr. Philip Alston. It is a matter of public record-----

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I heard the Senator mention the Soros foundation on a number of occasions.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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He got $600,000 from Soros and declared only $5,000 of it to the UN. Does the Government know about that, and is it worried about it?

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I am very pleased and happy-----

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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The Minister of State is a distinguished former Member of this House-----

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I reject any allegation that I have disrespected the House because I spoke only when it was my turn. I thank the Chair. I am in the hands of the Chair, of course, but I found the ruling difficult.

People like the staff I mentioned are doing incredible work. They are representing our country. The person the Senator mentioned is extremely highly qualified. NGOs and private foundations can make a contribution to human rights and the Human Rights Council, but there are a small number of countries, notably the Netherlands, Germany, the United States and Ireland, that proportionately make additional unearmarked voluntary contributions to allow the special rapporteurs maintain their independence. That is because we want them to be independent.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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Exactly.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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We are providing funding to make sure that is possible.

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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And not in the pay of private organisations.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I have not heard a specific allegation that somebody has had a conflict of interest. I have heard it stated but, as far as I can see, there has been nothing-----

Rónán Mullen (Independent)
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I gave two examples: Mr. Philip Alston and Ms Fionnuala Ní Aoláin.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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This year we provided €1.965 million in unearmarked funding to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Achieving the sustainable development goals in respect of protecting human rights requires collective action. To this end, we are a strong supporter of multilateralism and core flexible funding to enable our multilateral partners to plan and manage resources effectively.

In February, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Coveney, joined an initiative led by the Netherlands calling on the UN Secretary General to ensure the UN human-rights-based approach is supported with increased financial resources. The Department of Foreign Affairs, from Dublin and through permanent missions in Geneva and New York, will continue to advocate for adequate financing and will support the independence of the special procedures system.