Ms Iverna McGowan:

I will begin with the implementation of the EU Strategic Framework and Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy, copies of which have been circulated to members. This framework and action plan was adopted last June and was a significant achievement, marking a new point of departure for the EU's foreign relations. If this new human rights package is to succeed and meet its full potential, what is needed now is a heavily reinforced emphasis on implementation by all actors. The Irish Presidency should work in co-operation with the EEAS to ensure that the deadlines set out in the EU human rights package are met and actions are put into practice. In our recommendations, we have outlined some practical examples of how this might be done and will continue our engagement with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on this in the coming months.

Awareness and implementation of the EU guidelines on promoting compliance with international humanitarian law remains remarkably low in comparison with other EU guidelines. One of the problems in the past has been a lack of clarity over responsibility for their implementation, as this responsibility has been shared between different actors, under the primary oversight of the EU Council Working Group on Public International Law. As chair of this working group, the Irish Presidency has a particular role in collaboration with the EEAS to ensure further progress in the implementation of the guidelines. We are conscious that much of Ireland's work on this is below the radar. For instance, we understand that agreement was reached recently in the working group that during all EU dialogues and discussions with third countries, ratification of additional protocols to the Geneva Convention will be raised.

Current and future enlargement negotiations should be engaged with constructively, maximising the potential to improve the human rights situation in the countries concerned. This should also include work on freedom of expression and LGBTI and minority rights in Turkey, for example. In the Balkans, the EU accession process has been an essential tool for addressing impunity for war crimes, both at the international level through co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, and at national level through building up domestic judicial systems. In Croatia, while there has been progress domestically in recent years, further attention will need to be paid, post-accession, to ensuring that victims and their families are given access to truth, justice and reparation for human rights violations committed during the 1991 to 1995 war. Addressing ongoing impunity will also need to be prioritised with Serbia and other countries in the region as they start accession talks.

Mr. O'Gorman mentioned that we would elaborate further on the issue of internal-external coherence and in that context the Presidency must ensure greater coherence between internal and external human rights policy. We can no longer ignore the increase in racism and xenophobia in the EU's population and among senior political leaders. To take the example of Greece, migrants and ethnic minorities are hunted in the streets. Furthermore, 12 million Roma across the EU suffer pervasive and systemic discrimination. Amnesty International believes that it is critical to the EU's credibility that its support for women's rights internationally is matched by serious efforts to combat violence against women in EU countries. An important first step for the EU would be to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.

At the launch of the Presidency recommendations, we asked that the Presidency would assist the EEAS to deliver on human rights priorities at the UN and to work to promote more effective burden sharing between EU countries. A few months into the Presidency, we note and welcome the role that Ireland is playing with regard to EU burden sharing at the UN Human Rights Council. The Presidency has particular responsibility for helping to deliver on a strong and effective arms trade treaty, with human rights protection at its heart, at the final UN Conference in March 2013. We commend Ireland's supportive position and action on the arms trade treaty discussions to date and the open engagement with Amnesty International by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The Presidency could also play a leading role regarding an agreement on UN treaty body strengthening, which can enhance the ability of rights holders to enjoy their human rights. In terms of supporting the UN human rights mechanisms, Ireland could lead by example and set a firm timetable for ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, signed in 2007. Ireland could also lay out a clear process towards ratifying the optional protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and urge other states to sign and ratify it.

As committee members will recall, Ireland played a key role in the drafting of the EU human rights defenders guidelines during its 2004 Presidency. It is now important that Ireland follows up on this, shows leadership and ensures an EU focus on implementing those guidelines. In particular, there is a need to be proactive in ensuring systematic feedback to human rights defenders. This would involve giving support to human rights defenders under threat and consistently consulting with the individuals concerned regarding the level of visibility to be given to their particular case through prompt, vocal and visible reaction to restrictions to freedoms of expression, association and assembly, though démarches, press releases and public statements, including via the EU High Representative on Foreign Policy. Feedback should also be systematically provided to human rights defendants and their families on actions taken on their behalf.

On the recent revision of the EU guidelines on torture, we ask the Irish Presidency to show leadership to ensure that the EU focuses on implementing the guidelines on the ground to effectively eradicate torture and ill-treatment in all parts of the world. If the guidelines are to be effective on the ground, we need to make sure that EU staff abroad, EU delegations and member state embassies, including those responsible for drawing up country human rights strategy, have a deep understanding of the torture guidelines and their practical application.

On the topic of corporate accountability, under the human rights package EU countries have committed themselves to developing national plans for implementing the UN guiding principles on business and human rights. We have specific recommendations in this area and I invite members to refer to our document in that regard.

On preventing and combating violence against women, as the holder of the EU Presidency, Ireland must deliver on its pledge to the United Nations, before its election to the Human Rights Council, to play a role in efforts to combat all forms of discrimination and to promote gender equality. We have already mentioned the importance of signing and ratifying the Council of Europe's Istanbul convention in this regard.

Ireland needs to ensure a strong position on violence against women in line with international standards and the EU's external policy at the UN Commission on the Status of Women next week. Ireland should also fully support EU action to combat female genital mutilation both in EU and third countries.

In the Presidency recommendations members will find a list of nine cases of people under threat. People around the world are suffering the consequences of having their human rights violated. The adoption of the EU guidelines on human rights defenders is one of the key outcomes of the Irish Presidency in 2004. As Ireland is a member of the UN Human Rights Council and is hosting the EU Presidency, Amnesty International asks that we ensure active engagement on these cases by raising the plight of the people concerned at every opportunity and pressing for tangible progress; working with all EU embassies and delegations in other countries to achieve positive change for those concerned; acting locally and in national capitals under all human rights guidelines; and ensuring that action is taken not only on the cases listed outside the EU but also on the cases mentioned which occur in the European Union.