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Accessibility & LanguageNews
Universal Periodic Review submission
Apr
15
2026
Posted: 16:32 IST
Staff and postgraduate researchers at the Irish Centre for Human Rights and School of Law at University of Galway have sent a joint Stakeholder Submission to the UN Human Rights Council to inform Ireland’s upcoming Universal Periodic Review in November 2026.
The authors of the submission, Keelin Barry, Professor Shane Darcy, Dr Edel Hughes, Salvador Leyva, Dr Róisín Mulgrew, Dr Charles O’Mahony, Erin O’Riordan, Dr Maeve O’Rourke and Luke Smyth, have raised the following human rights concerns which relate to their areas of research:
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The need for Ireland to ratify (1) the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, (2) the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, and (3) the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture;
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Protection of prisoners’ rights in Ireland;
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The experiences of people living in Direct Provision, including persons with disabilities;
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Upcoming changes to Ireland’s international protection regime pursuant to the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum;
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Access to justice for persons with disabilities;
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The rights of older people in relation to care and personal support;
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Young persons with disabilities' inappropriate accommodation in nursing homes;
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Traveller housing provision;
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Business and Human Rights issues, including housing and homelessness, links between multinational corporations with Irish-based operations and the unlawful Israeli occupation of Palestinian Territories and breaches of humanitarian law and international crimes, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, Irish participation in academic/industry research partnerships that include Israeli institutions, use of Shannon airport as a refueling stop for US military planes and rendition flights, Ireland’s tax regime, the effects of prior importation of coal from Cerrejón mine in Colombia, hate speech online, and continuing Irish exports of alumina to Russia;
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Environmental justice and climate change, including its impacts on vulnerable and marginalised communities, and Government plans to import US fracked gas.
Ireland’s Universal Periodic Review is due to take place in Geneva on 10 November 2026. All stakeholder submissions, and the Government’s report and a compilation of UN information (based on human rights treaty bodies’ previous Concluding Observations and Special Procedures’ observations and recommendations, and contributed to by any other interested UN agency) will be available online in due course.
