Centre for Criminal Justice and Human Rights (CCJHR) - Reports

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CCTV as a crime prevention strategy: a review of the literature
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2009-01) Appelbe, Dorothy; University College Cork; Allianz Ireland; Cork Chamber of Commerce, Ireland
CCTV is undoubtedly one of the most renowned weapons in the fight against crime. Funded by Allianz Ireland, Cork Chamber of Commerce and the Faculty of Law, University College, Cork, this research sought to examine the emergence of CCTV as a crime prevention strategy and the effectiveness it displays in this role. To do this, a literature review was undertaken to uncover the theoretical rationale underpinning the use of CCTV and explore the rise of surveillance as mechanism of social control. Numerous evaluations and studies, particularly from Britain, but also Ireland, were reviewed to investigate the impact of CCTV on crime, to assess the nature and value of those evaluations and consequently, to formulate a number of recommendations. It is hoped that this work will prove useful to those contemplating the future deployment of CCTV as a crime prevention strategy.
Access to justice for people with disabilities as victims of crime in Ireland
(National Disability Authority, 2012-02) Edwards, Claire; Harold, Gillian; Kilcommins, Shane
International literature recognises that people with disabilities are at greater risk of crime than their able-bodied counterparts, but that crime against people with disabilities is significantly under-reported and often fails to proceed to prosecution. However, little is known in the Irish context about how the criminal justice system responds to the needs of people with disabilities as victims of crime. This study aims to: Explore the barriers that people with disabilities who report a crime face in accessing the criminal justice system in Ireland and internationally; Compare the legislative tools and frameworks across different jurisdictions which seek to protect the rights of people with disabilities who report crime and abuse; Analyse the specific policies and practices that agencies of the criminal justice system have in place to facilitate people with disabilities’ access to justice; Explore national and international innovations which may contribute to strengthening the way in which the Irish criminal justice system responds to the needs of people with disabilities. The study addresses these aims through an international literature review and semi-structured interviews conducted with key agencies in the Irish criminal justice system.
The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Ireland: will it make a difference?
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2012-12) Smyth, Claire-Michelle
The divide between the protection and recognition of Civil and Political Rights compared with Social and Economic Rights is a stark one. In response to this divide the United Nations in June 2008 adopted the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which for the first time allows for an international forum to determine breaches of social and economic rights within domestic systems. The task of bringing such an Optional Protocol to fruition was one fraught with opposition, particularly from states who grant little or no judicial protection to social and economic rights. Ireland is one of those states where the fight to judicially protect social and economic rights has been met with fierce resistance. The status of Social and Economic Rights in Ireland determined by the Supreme Court is that they do not warrant judicial protection and are solely within the ambit of the Executive arm of the state, a view which is consistent with many other opponents to the Optional Protocol. Having signed the Optional Protocol in 2012 Ireland made a political commitment to the furtherance and protection of these rights within the domestic system. Given the opposition to the Optional Protocol, the content was significantly diluted and its potential impact on the Irish jurisdiction is questionable.
Exclusion from refugee status: asylum seekers and terrorism in the UK
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2012-12) Singer, Sarah
Recent legal and political discourse on terrorism within the United Nations (UN) has presented refugee status as a means by which terrorists can seek entry to a country to perpetrate terrorist acts, or evade prosecution for their crimes. For example, UN Security Council Resolution 1373 of 2001 urges states to ‘ensure ... that refugee status is not abused by the perpetrators, organisers or facilitators of terrorist acts’. The drive to deny the benefits of refugee status to suspected terrorists has led to a radical reinterpretation of the exclusion clause of the 1951 UN Refugee Convention, both at national and international levels, so as to bring terrorism within the ambit of this provision. An asylum-seeker will now be excluded from refugee status if he or she has committed or prepared for an act of ’terrorism’, or has encouraged or induced someone else to do so. However, ‘terrorism’ is not a legal label, but an undefined political term: there is at present no internationally agreed definition of ‘terrorism’, nor an internationally agreed list of ‘terrorist organisations’. The discretion inherent in the undefined nature of the term ‘terrorism’ therefore leaves the Refugee Convention’s exclusion clause open to abuse by Member States seeking to exclude genuine asylum seekers from refugee status. In this paper it will be argued that, in light of the serious consequences of exclusion from refugee status, there is a need for a principled approach to the application of the Refugee Convention’s exclusion clause which is not served by the undefined political term ‘terrorism’. Furthermore, since fleeing persecution for political opinion is an archetypal reason for seeking asylum, injecting subjective political notions of ‘terrorism’ into refugee exclusion has the potential toundermine the very foundations of the international refugee protection framework.
Forgotten or neglected? The prison officer in existing penal research and the case for Irish explorations of prison work
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2013-06) Barry, Colette; Irish Research Council
The role of the modern prison officer is undoubtedly one of considerable significance within prisons and across prison systems. While officers occupy important roles in the context of the implementation of policy and the legitimacy of the prison, a paucity of robust prison officer research has persisted for many years. Described in existing literature as the ‘invisible ghosts of penality’, prison officers and their culture have not been subjected to the same rigours of empirical analysis as the institution of the prison and the prisoners who reside within it. Recent years have seen a burgeoning body of research emerge internationally. Irish scholarship in this area has not begun to flourish in a similar fashion, however. Using existing research as a starting point, this paper seeks to advocate for the need for Irish studies of prison officers and their cultures, experiences and perceptions. The paper will commence with a discussion of the importance and value of prison officer research. An outline of existing research will be presented, highlighting in particular recent empirical work on prison officer culture. Following this, the paper will move to consider the Irish context, beginning with a discussion of the lack of research interest and the primarily descriptive focus of previous academic endeavours in this area. Finally, the need for robust Irish research in this area will be articulated, emphasising the significance of future Irish scholarship as a contribution to existing knowledge of prison officers and criminological research more generally.
Racism and hate crime in Ireland: is the legislative and policy framework adequate? Conference summary
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2013-10) Centre for Criminal Justice and Human Rights (CCJHR); Nasc, Irish Immigrant Support Centre
Hosted by Nasc, the Irish Immigrant Support Centre and the Centre for Criminal Justice and Human Rights, UCC, this conference aimed to promote an open dialogue on Racism and Hate Crime in Ireland. Expert speakers and practitioners from a variety of fields were invited to explore the effectiveness of our current legislative and policy framework and to discuss the impact of hate crime, racism and discrimination of minority groups in Ireland. A number of key issues, and further points for consideration and recommendations were highlighted throughout the day by each of the speakers. This summary aims to highlight the emerging issues and themes, and to draw on these to suggest the next steps to take to respond effectively to racism and hate crime in Ireland.
Beyond McMahon – the future of asylum reception in Ireland: Conference summary
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2018-04-25) Centre for Criminal Justice and Human Rights (CCJHR); Nasc, Irish Immigrant Support Centre
The conference ‘Beyond McMahon – the Future of Asylum Reception in Ireland’ took place on Wednesday 25th April 2018 in the Western Gateway Building in University College Cork (UCC). Organised jointly by Nasc, the Migrant and Refugee Support Centre, and UCC’s Centre for Criminal Justice and Human Rights (CCJHR), the conference was generously funded by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC). The conference aimed to assess developments in the Irish asylum reception system (‘direct provision’) since the establishment of a Working Group on the Protection Process and Direct Provision, and its report,the ‘McMahon Report’(2015). Using the Report and its recommendations as a starting point, this conference aimed to examine the future of, and possible alternatives to, direct provision in Ireland. To this end, the conference gathered experts from other European jurisdictions and individuals with experience of Ireland’s current reception system, including – importantly – input from asylum seekers. Fiona Finn, CEO of Nasc, introduced the conference’s goal succinctly: it aimed to catalyse a change in the current Irish reception system. This summary hopes to record some of the main ideas and concerns related by speakers and audience members at the conference, so that they may be used for future reference.
The securitisation of migration: leaving protection behind? The “hotspot approach” and the identification of potential victims of human trafficking
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2018-08) Magugliani, Noemi
Recent developments in the European Union (EU) policy on the management of migratory flows, including the adoption of the so-called “hotspot approach” in Italy and Greece, have resulted in the implementation of a strategy that is increasingly and, it is argued, almost exclusively security-based. The inability or unwillingness to build mechanisms that, without setting aside the legitimate interests of the EU and its Member States, would have ensured appropriate human rights safeguards, as well as respect for international legal obligations, has had massive effects on the safety and well-being of migrants and of society as a whole. The implementation of a security-based policy has had a particularly significant impact on vulnerable categories of migrants, including victims of human trafficking. In fact, and despite the fact that connections between human rights and the fight against trafficking are multiple and well-established, States have consistently chosen to deal with trafficking as an immigration issue or as a matter of crime or public order. Victims of human trafficking are nonetheless still entitled to the full range of human rights but, in order to access those rights and therefore protection, a key aspect is the process of identification, which ought to be performed as soon as possible including in the context of the hotspots. The “hotspot approach” in its present form, deeply entrenched in the so-called Dublin system, however, cannot be considered in line with a human rights-based approach, and the broader security-based policy that has been implemented at European and national level has undermined the availability and accessibility of protection mechanisms for victims of human trafficking.
Examining measures facilitating participation of female child victims in the prosecution of sexual abuse cases in Uganda’s criminal justice system
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2018-09) Nabasitu, Daisy
Children in most African traditional societies were not actively involved in decision-making processes in matters affecting them thereby impacting on the enjoyment of their rights. These traditions have been abandoned with the adoption of article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) which provides for children’s right to participate in all matters affecting them. Sexual offences against female children are prevalent in Uganda due to the vulnerability and age. As victims of sexual abuse, children are often called upon to testify in criminal proceedings. Although children’s right to participate in criminal trials is guaranteed in the Constitution of Uganda and other national laws such as the Children’s Act, prosecution of sexual offences in Uganda’s adversarial system is hindered by lack of victim’s medical evidence, absence of eye witnesses to the commission of the offence, traumatic and unregulated cross-examination by defence counsel and limited participation based on age. These hinder female victim’s participation in criminal trials. This calls for adoption special protective measures such as use of video testimony, use of child sensitive cross-examination techniques, concealing victim’s identity during trial, exclusion of public from the court room, use of intermediaries. Not only will these provide relief to the victim but will enhance female child victim participation in sexual abuse trials. This paper examines the role of child victims in criminal trials. It reviews the international and regional legal framework regulating child participation in Uganda’s criminal justice system in part two. It further points out the adversarial system as a major barrier to female child victim participation. Lastly, the paper advances reasons for use of special protective measures intended to protect victims of sexual abuse from intimidation and secondary victimisation while testifying in criminal proceedings.
Re-thinking the right to water: enhancing service provider accountability through participatory rights & strategic public interest litigation – South African and Irish experiences
(Centre for Criminal Justice & Human Rights (CCJHR), School of Law, University College Cork, 2018-09) Nankan, Sahara
Over the past two decades there have been significant legal and policy shifts under both international and domestic law towards the recognition of the emerging right to water and sanitation. What unites them is their underlying attempt at articulating a suitable human rights approach to the increasingly acute global water crisis and the need for enhanced administrative justice in service-provider accountability. However, in doing so the limitations of ‘rights talk’ have crept into the discussion leading to an often paralyzing, and unhelpfully polarising, ‘public vs private debate’ in the discourse, as well as a reductionist and one-sided policy focus on the substantive right to water in the form of availability, access and quality control with scant improvements on the ground. This has led to the significant risk that this right will become a postpolitical empty signifier if the challenge of increasing its effectiveness is not met in a more nuanced and holistic manner. This paper therefore analyses the transformative legal potential that procedural rights hold for injecting meaningful content to this highly complex and politicised topic. It focuses on the lessons learned from public interest litigation failures in South Africa’s water justice movement over the past decade, despite a constitutional right to water, and emphasizes the need for enhancing access to information and robust community participatory rights. It compares and contrasts this to the recent Irish experience in public advocacy opposition to austerity-backed water charges and calls for a right to water in Ireland. It warns of the dangers of superficial or static ‘rights talk’, a misplacement of focus on the ‘public/private’ dichotomy and a lack of awareness civil society advocacy might have of the importance of judicial interpretation, especially with regards to socio-economic rights which the right to water is inevitably part and parcel of. By questioning how political factors may impact upon legal objectives in situ such an approach seeks to contribute towards giving this right more practical meaning and relevance in the future.
Stalking and harassment: An investigation of experiences in Ireland
(University College Cork, 2023-02) O'Sullivan, Catherine; Staunton, Ciara; Tusla, Ireland

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