July 2008 Rev Mervyn Gibson and Sean Murray, members of the Strategic Review of Parading Board, addressed CAJ staff on the contents of their interim report. CAJ will now be making a submission on the contents of the report in time for the closing date of August 8th. Read more CAJ’s Director Mike Ritchie had an article in the Irish News recently reflecting on the first months of the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry. CAJ has welcomed the commencement of an Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) of the draft Masterplan for Crumlin Road Gaol/Girdwood Park. For some time CAJ has argued that the best way of ensuring that the redevelopment takes place in a way which will provide maximum benefit to those in most need is through the EQIA framework and we look forward to engaging positively with the team from the DSD who will carry out the EQIA. So far CAJ has had a meeting with the team from the North Belfast Community Action Unit who are carrying out the work on the EQIA, and spoken at a seminar in North Belfast for community workers outlining the potential benefits that can be delivered by following the EQIA process. CAJ would encourage as many organisations and individuals as possible to register their interest in this consultation, which provides a significant opportunity to further equality in Northern Ireland. See registration letter attached from DSD, along with CAJ's previous correspondence on this issue. Find registration letter here See submissions and the letter to the Minister attached: The Girdwood Response here Cover Letter Girdwood here Letter to Minister 2008 here CAJ continues to monitor the various 'Cory' public inquiries. Robert Hamill Inquiry Mr Justice Weatherup heard the judicial review brought by the family of Robert Hamill challenging the Secretary of State's decision refusing to extend the Public Inquiry's terms of reference to include the decisions taken by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). In summary the thrust of the applicants' case before Mr Justice Weatherup was that the Secretary of State (SoS) had erred in law in that he misdirected himself in failing to give due regard to the public concern and the level of concern for lack of prosecution; that the SoS had applied the wrong test in reaching his decision and that he had failed to give due regard to the views of the family and those of the Chair of the Inquiry. In addition the applicant submitted that the advice given by the Attorney General maybe tainted due to her office's dual role as the legal adviser to the Ministers and as the superintendent of prosecutions in Northern Ireland. The Inquiry Counsel supported the applicant's arguments and added that the Chair of the Inquiry was not consulted properly and his views were not given appropriate weight. It was also submitted that the extension of the terms of reference are crucial to the Inquiry conducting its work. In summary Counsel on behalf of the Respondent argued that an independent and fair minded informed observer after considering the totality of the evidence in this case would find that the SoS acted properly in that he sought independent counsel advice to inform himself of all relevant matters. He suggested that it is not for the Inquiry to allay public concern but for the Minister to allay public concern in establishing the Inquiry. Mr Justice Weatherup indicated that he will hand down his judgement on Tuesday, 1st July 2008. Rosemary Nelson Inquiry The application of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) for leave to judicially review the Inquiry's decision refusing them the right to cross examine witnesses who criticise individual officers and the police force as a whole, was heard by Mr Justice Treacy on 26th June 2008. Counsel for the applicants argued that the Inquiry decision goes to the heart of the issue of fairness and that the procedure adopted by the Inquiry is uniquely different to that of the Robert Hamill Inquiry, the Bloody Sunday Inquiry and the Billy Wright Inquiry. He argued that the right of cross examination is crucial where serious allegations have been made against individual police officers and the police force as a whole. Mr Phillips, Counsel for the Inquiry argued that this application should be struck down as it was not made promptly and within three months from when the issue arose. Mr Justice Treacy is expected to hand down his judgement on the leave application on Tuesday, 1st July 2008. Billy Wright Inquiry The Inquiry has now appointed a new Senior Counsel who is expected to start in the position this summer. For more details, please see their respective websites on www.billywrightinquiry.org; www.rosemarynelsoninquiry.org; www.roberthamillinquiry.org The UK government last year submitted its fifth periodic report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and in May of this year the Committee met in a pre-sessional Working Group to decide on the questions it would like to explore further with the government when the formal examination takes place next year. This is an important opportunity to lobby the UN Committee and CAJ recently held a meeting of groups working on a range of socio-economic issues to discuss the process of making a submission. CAJ has also made its own submission to the Working Group. To read CAJ’s submission, click here Anyone interested in receiving further information about this process should contact the CAJ office on 02890 961122 / info@caj.org.uk CAJ responded to the equality assessment of the Budget/Programme for Government. CAJ has expressed particular concerns about the equality implications of the current spending plans which we believe will lead to an overall increase in inequality in Northern Ireland. Please find the response to the EQIA of the Budget Programme for Government here   CAJ launched a major report in Westminster entitled "War on Terror: lessons from Northern Ireland." Copies of the report and executive summary can be got by contacting the office. See also press release about the launch, which is taking place together with Liberty and the International Commission of Jurists. See press release here See summary of report here For free copies of the printed summary or copies of the full report see order form attached here 2008 is the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement; hopefully the year when we will make real advances towards a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland, and the year in which the UK government will be scrutinised by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Please click here for CAJ's recent submission to CEDAW. (February 2008) Moreover, it seems like a good time to take the "Women's Rights are Human Rights" quilt out of its wrappings and encourage women's groups and others to consider displaying this throughout the coming year at their events and meetings. "Women's Rights are Human Rights" quilt is currently on display at the International Conference "Piece by Peace" in Belfast -further details on the conference go to http://womensgrid.freecharity.org.uk/?p=86. The quilt had previously been displayed at the Verbal Arts Centre in Derry where the exhibition "The Art of Survival, International and Irish Quilts" took place from 8th Mar - 19th April. CAJ coordinated the production of this quilt & it was prepared for display at the 1995 Beijing conference and has been widely used since then. For info on the quilt and an explanation of the different panels click here For bookings of the quilt contact Liz - liz@caj.org.uk     CAJ has published a summary of our equality report – “Rhetoric and the Reality” and is circulating it widely. Please see the summary attached here CAJ has produced an updated version of its Information Pack on a Bill of Rights. The pack - which is free - is designed for use by local groups and others who are interested in learning more about human rights generally and a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. The Pack is simple and easy to use and contains some background information and a number of exercises that groups can carry out to help them think about what a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland could contain. To obtain your free copy, contact the CAJ office on 02890 961122, mail to info@caj.org.uk or click here for the order form. Click here to see a CAJ Bill of Rights Programme, showing how the Information Pack is used and discussing what a Bill of Rights for NI means, courtesy of NVTV. At the launch of the pack a massive Bill of Rights Board was produced from what the two groups involved in the training - Star Neighbourhood Centre, New Lodge and Old Warren Partnership, Lisburn - want to prioritise in a Bill of Rights. These boards are available for display purposes at Bill of Rights events. Please contact fiona@caj.org.uk to arrange.   Since January 2006 CAJ has been sending out its monthly published "E-Newsletter". It contains a number of Just News-articles and the latest from our Webnews. If you would like to subscribe, please input your email below and click on "subscribe". E-Mail-adress:

'Civil Liberties in Northern Ireland: the CAJ Handbook' 4th edition Please click on cover for more information. how to order