The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has called for a “human rights review” of the Covid lockdown to assess any “unintended negative consequences for human rights and democracy”.
“ICCL is a pro-science, pro-vaccine organisation – but above all, we are a human rights organisation,” the group said.
“We took a position against vaccine passports and vaccine mandates, due to the impact they have on fundamental rights – including the right to equal treatment, to bodily integrity and to privacy.
“Most recently, we made a submission to the Independent Covid-19 Evaluation. This evaluation is a chance to reflect on the State’s emergency response: what worked, what didn’t, how people’s rights were impacted and, above all, what we can learn for the future.”
Some of key recommendations include ensuring that the Covid-19 Evaluation “is an honest and fully transparent reflection on actions taken by the State during the pandemic — including ones that had unintended negative consequences for human rights and democracy.”
The ICCL also asks to “ensure that emergency measures are subject to meaningful scrutiny by the Oireachtas, are compatible with the State’s obligations to protect and uphold human rights, and are proportionate and the least restrictive as possible.”
They also urged there to be an amendment to the Electoral Reform Act 2022, which would “allow for elections to take place even during times of crisis.”
“Importantly, we don’t need to wait for another pandemic to act,” they said.
“Many of our recommendations can be put in place now to help protect rights during any future emergency – whether it’s extreme weather, security threats or another public health crisis.”
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has repeatedly said that he wants a Covid-19 “evaluation” rather than an “inquiry”, because he didn’t want key decision makers during the Covid period to be treated in an adversarial and hostile way.
He argued that this could paralyse decision makers in future crisis situations and cause them to hesitate in making crucial policy decisions on fear of a future inquiry.