Vol. 416 No. 4
6 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if having regard to the speech the Taoiseach made to the World Summit for Children last year, he will outline the progress which has been made towards ensuring that Ireland is in a position to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; if any deadline has been set for ratification of the Convention; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
51 Mrs. Owen asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will outline the actions, if any, he has taken to enable Ireland to ratify the United Nations Convention on Children following a statement by the Taoiseach to the United Nations World Congress for Children in September 1990 in which he outlined Ireland's intention to ratify this Convention.
55 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will outline the measures which the Government have taken towards the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; and when the Irish Government will ratify the Convention.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 6, 51 and 55 together.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child entered into force on 2 September 1990, one month after the twentieth state had ratified it. It was signed by Ireland subject to ratification on 29 September 1990.
The Convention is the most complete statement of children's rights ever made and is the first to give these righs the force of international law. It establishes a set of common values and aims, valid everywhere, while at the same time taking account of the different cultural, social economic and political realities of individual states so that, within the rights common to all, each state may seek its own national means of implementation. The Convention acknowledges the primary role of the family and parents in the care and protection of children and the obligation of the State to help them in carrying out these duties. The Convention has been ratified by 96 countries to date.
The Government are fully committed to ratifying the Convention at the earliest possible opportunity. The Foreign Adoptions Act and the Child Care Act, which were enacted before the summer recess last year, contain provisions necessary to enable Ireland to ratify the Convention. The views of the Attorney General are being sought with regard to what additional measures, if any, are required to enable the Government to proceed to ratification.
Will the Minister give any indication of how soon ratification can be undertaken and if the Attorney General has indicated what further steps may be necessary? Will he indicate when the Attorney General was asked to give his opinion as it is now some time since the former Taoiseach agreed that the Convention would be ratified?
I do not have that information available, but if the Deputy would like to table a specific question in that regard or wishes to correspond with me I will facilitate him.
Is the Minister aware that late last year his predecessor, Deputy Collins, was in touch with me in regard to this issue? He told me that the examination by Government Departments had been completed and that the matter had been referred to the Attorney General. Is the Minister also aware that his predecessor stated that Ireland had played an active role in the drafting of the Convention and in contributing to ensuring that the rights of the unborn would be fully protected?
I must dissuade the Deputy from quoting at Question Time as it is not in order.
The matter was so important that I did not want to misquote the Minister's predecessor. Will the Minister agree it is time that we made progress in relation to the ratification of this Convention as over 2,000 countries have ratified it?
I agree that we should be getting on with the business of ratification and I will undertake to the House to do it within a reasonable time. However, I do not wish to put a time limit on it.
Will the Minister consider, (a) a review within his Department of the consequences of delaying ratification and international instruments until specific measures of domestic legislation are ready and (b) will he agree that the Convention establishes direct rights for the child over and beyond any principle of subsidiarity? Therefore, it is very much in the public interest, particularly for child development legislation, to move to a position of acknowledging rights directly and later, if necessary, having ensuing legislation.
I will certainly do what the Deputy requested in the first part of his question. I do not think there is any doubt about the acknowledgment of the rights of the child and so on, but I will take account of what he said and I appreciate his comments.
