An Coinbhinsiún chun Cearta an Duine agus Saoirsí Bunúsacha a Chosaint

Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of Europe launches Irish translation of the European Convention on Human Rights

The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) is the cornerstone of human rights protection across all 46 Council of Europe member states. The Convention has thus far been translated into more than forty languages, but there has been no official version available in Irish. The Presidency is therefore proud to launch the first edition of the ECHR in Irish, as part of our efforts to reinforce the vital work of the European Court of Human Rights.

Speaking of the launch, Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said:

‘As Ireland holds the Presidency of the Council of Europe for a seventh time, it is fitting – and not before time – that the European Convention of Human Rights would be presented in our first official language. It is all the more timely, perhaps, that this publication should occur in the month we mark the first anniversary of the death of Máire Mhac an tSaoi, the brilliant Irish language poet who served as Ireland’s first female Ambassador to the Council of Europe in 1961.’

Highlighting the importance of the ECHR, President-Elect of the European Court of Human Rights Síofra O’Leary said:

‘The contribution to Irish life of the Convention system and the work of European and Irish judges when applying it are too numerous to discuss in the short space available. Judgments relating to civil legal aid, the decriminalisation of homosexual activity between consenting adults, the right of criminal suspects to legal assistance or the protection of the home, to name but a few, have led to significant changes in Irish law.’