Willie Penrose
Question:92 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he favours a rights based approach to development as suggested by the Human Rights Council of Australia; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12917/01]
Written Answers - Human Rights Issues.
Ireland's official development co-operation programme, Ireland Aid, is grounded on genuine respect for human rights and endeavours to ensure that the entire programme is imbued with an awareness and sensitivity towards the promotion and protection of human rights.
Ireland Aid takes a holistic approach to addressing the issue of human rights within its development co-operation programmes. The centrality of economic, social and cultural rights, as well as civil and political rights, to all development efforts is not only acknowledged by Ireland Aid but is actively pursued within its programmes. As the primary focus of the Ireland Aid programme is poverty reduction, Ireland Aid actively works to promote socio-economic rights through provision of basic needs, while it also endeavours to cultivate and encourage an environment which respects and vindicates personal and political freedoms.
In recent years Ireland Aid has taken the active approach of explicitly mainstreaming human rights, democratisation and governance activities into its programmes in the six bilateral priority countries and in South Africa. Issues relating to human rights now form an element of the policy dialogue process which is undertaken with partner countries. Ireland Aid's strong human rights culture is clearly reflected, for example, in the prominence given to partnership and participatory approaches with bilateral country programmes. Ireland Aid's area based programmes have long been distinguished for their participatory approaches and community based development.
Ireland Aid also operates a separate human rights and democratisation scheme, with a broad objective to assist the development of democratic processes and institutions and the promotion and protection of human rights in developing countries. This is done mainly through support for relatively small scale projects which contribute to training and capacity building, particularly at community level.
With regard to the particular organisation referred to by the Deputy my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, met representatives of the Human Rights Council of Australia last October. During that meeting the HRCA outlined its particular approach to development co-operation. Recently a representative of the HRCA met officials from Ireland Aid. At these and other meetings with the HRCA the central role played by human rights within Ireland Aid was elucidated and it was highlighted that one of the issues being considered by the Ireland Aid review committee, chaired by the Minister of State, is the entire area of human rights as a horizontal issue in development. An interest was also expressed to the HRCA in engaging further in the ongoing debate on the most appropriate and effective role for the promotion and protection of human rights within development co-operation.