Letterkenny played host to the second in a series of national public consultation meetings held by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) to inform its upcoming report on women’s rights and gender equality in Ireland.
The consultation meeting, held at the Regional Cultural centre, gathered together a broad range of local women and community and advocacy groups to hear their direct experiences and first-hand views of discrimination and women’s human rights issues.
The Commission will use these testimonies gathered in Letterkenny to inform the UN on Ireland’s progress towards meeting the commitments it signed up to in the women’s Convention. The report will be presented to the United Nations in advance of a formal examination of Ireland under the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
Chief Commissioner Emily Logan said the response from women across the diversity of Irish life has so far been positive.
“This is an opportunity for women and girls in Ireland to highlight their views, their experiences and their opinions on the state of women’s rights in Ireland. Our report to the UN will help to underline gaps in the protection of women’s rights in Ireland, and the continuing barriers to gender equality.”
Avril McMonagle of Donegal Childcare Committee who attended the meetings said “This was an insightful and thought proving meeting of minds on women’s rights and equality not only in relation to Donegal but across Ireland. This was a valuable opportunity to discuss and define our common experiences as local women and to put forward a strong shared message. It is reassuring that our views and experiences will inform the report that IHREC brings to the UN committee.”
Throughout September 2016, the Commission will be holding a series of regional consultations with women to garner their views and experiences.
The meetings will be held in Monaghan, Kerry and Waterford. In addition to country-wide meetings, the Commission will also host a stand on the theme of women’s human rights and equality at the National Ploughing Championships, in Tullamore, Co Offaly, on 20-22 September.
Over the course of the summer, the Commission has held a number of meetings with women from different walks of life in Ireland. This has included recent visits to women living in direct provision in Killarney and Galway, and women in Limerick Prison and Mountjoy’s Dóchas Centre.