Human rights challenges explored at Thomas D’Arcy McGee Summer School in Carlingford

The 13th Thomas D’Arcy McGee Summer School, held on 13th-14th August in Carlingford, concluded with a powerful exploration of current human rights challenges. The two-day event, opened by HE Ambassador Nancy Smyth, Canadian Ambassador to Ireland,  gathered scholars, activists, and commentators, offering a sobering yet hopeful examination of the global state of human rights amidst rising populism, racism and authoritarianism.

In his opening address, Seamus Murphy, Chair of the Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust, set the tone with a reflection on the pessimism of the post-war baby boomer generation. He highlighted the "new reality" of declining human rights in the face of growing populism across Europe, the US, and the Middle East.

Murphy invoked stark imagery, noting that the recent violence in Gaza and the far-right riots in Belfast had "shattered our sense of rules-based human progress," drawing comparisons to the darkest periods of the 20th century. Despite this, he found hope in the global backlash against Western human rights hypocrisy, particularly among young people in the US and on the island of Ireland.

A highlight of the Summer School was an interactive session with prominent Israeli commentator and rights advocate Gideon Levy, who joined the event online. Levy expressed his despair over the ongoing violence in Gaza and the "permanent occupation" of the West Bank by Israeli settlers. He emphasised that the denial of Palestinian humanity by Israeli society and leadership rendered human rights meaningless.

Levy called for a shift towards a one-state solution based on human rights, equality, and democracy, drawing parallels to the international efforts, including civil society, that dismantled apartheid in South Africa. He also touched on the role of American youth in shaping future US policies on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, despite the failures of current leadership.

Professor Colin Harvey of Queen's University Belfast emphasised the need to centre human rights in discussions about the future of Ireland. He stressed that these rights extend beyond political freedoms to encompass economic and social rights, arguing for enforceable rights in the real world – like the workplace, education, the health services. We need to push back on the racist and anti-immigrant tropes from the bottom-up —house by house, street by street, medical centre by medical centre.

Monica McWilliams echoed these sentiments, lamenting the UK Government’s refusal to implement a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland as stipulated in the Good Friday Agreement. She recalled the repeated rejection of rights legislation during the pre-Troubles era, which, she argued, set the stage for decades of conflict.

Throughout the event, speakers underscored the complex interplay between human rights and governance. Alyson Kilpatrick, Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission highlighted the Commission's success in using human rights law to challenge the UK Government's "Illegal Immigration Act."

Niall Muldoon, Ireland’s Ombudsman for Children, questioned the prioritisation of inheritance tax cuts over critical funding for children's mental health services, while Rachel Coyle of the National Women’s Council of Ireland criticised the recent referendum rejection of constitutional changes affecting women’s rights. Coyle argued that Ireland suffers from "Implementation Deficit Disorder" despite its strong policies.

The challenges facing asylum seekers in Ireland were brought into sharp relief by Bulelani Mfaco of the Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI). Mfaco debunked the notion that asylum seekers are drawn to Ireland by benefits or job prospects, explaining that most flee to the nearest safe country. He described the dire conditions in Ireland's direct provision centres and the added trauma caused by anti-immigrant protests.

The Summer School also featured a thought-provoking play by Anthony Russell, "The Trial of John Mitchel (and his statue in Newry) before the Court of Human History," performed by the Newpoint Players. The audience, acting as jury, debated whether Mitchel’s statue should remain in Newry given his known racist beliefs and support for the US Confederacy. In a surprising outcome, the jury voted almost two-to-one in favour of retaining the statue, with South African activist Bulelani Mfaco arguing that it could serve as an educational tool, highlighting the contradictions of history.

The event concluded on a philosophical note, with Turlough O’Donnell, Jury Foreman and keynote speaker, stressing the importance of dialogue over dialectic. He highlighted the significance of the Carlingford Summer School as a gathering for a conversation on human rights - in small places close to home, because, the event organisers say, "if human rights for all are not upheld there, where will they be?"

For more information on the Thomas D’Arcy McGee Summer School, please contact [email protected] or [email protected]