MARY ROBINSON LECTURES IN OMAGH THIS WEEKEND
Mary Robinson lectures in Omagh this weekend
ON Sunday Mary Robinson, right, former President of Ireland, will give a lecture in Omagh Leisure Complex.
The lecture entitled 'Learning to Heal Together lessons from Omagh to the world and from the world to Omagh' will reflect on the good which has emerged, and continues to emerge from the terrible atrocity of the Omagh bomb which devastated the town and the community five years ago. The lecture will be followed by a question and answer session, and the evening will be chaired by Dr John Dunlop, former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.
This event marks a move into a new phase of acknowledgement of the event of 15 August 1998, as Omagh begins to share with the wider world the knowledge, skills and experience learned from the past. In the five years since the bomb all sections of the community have worked with courage and determination to rebuild their lives and their town, and have learned much which can help others develop a strong, united community spirit. In a broader context, there are many communities which have overcome adversity and gone on to flourish through co-operation and a sense of shared purpose and in her address Mrs Robinson will draw on her broad range of experience to highlight how we in Omagh can learn from them.
Mary Robinson, a barrister by profession, was inaugurated as the seventh President of Ireland, and the first female president, on 3 December 1990, and served for seven years until September 1997 when she took up the post of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. She brought to the presidency legal knowledge, deep intellect and political experience. She took on the issue of what she called the 'diaspora', the vast number of Irish emigrants and people of Irish descent.
She also literally changed the face of Anglo-Irish relations, visiting Britain and in one particular epoch making moment, became the first Irish president to visit Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. She welcomed visits by senior British royals, most notably the Prince of Wales to her residence Aras an Uachtarain.
Mary Robinson became High Commissioner for Human Rights in September 1997, following her nomination to the post by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the endorsement of the General Assembly. She assumed responsibility for the UN human rights programme at a time of great change. As High Commissioner; Mrs Robinson gave priority to implementing the reform proposal of Secretary General Kofi Annan to integrate human rights concerns in all the activities of the United Nations.
She also oversaw a reorientation of the priorities of her Office, which increasingly focused its work where it matters most at the country and regional levels. As part of this focus, she travelled during her first year as High Commissioner to Rwanda, South Africa, Colombia and Cambodia, among other countries.
In September 1998, she was the first High Commissioner to visit China, signing an agreement that should lead to a wide-ranging programme of cooperation for the improvement of human rights in that country. Under a similar process, the High Commissioner has sent human rights workers to Indonesia and to countries in Europe and Africa. Mrs Robinson has also strengthened human rights monitoring in such conflict areas as Kosovo, in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
In September 2002 Mary Robinson completed her term as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and became Executive Director of the Ethical Globalization Initiative. The Initiative will draw on her experience and leadership in the field of human rights, her extensive network of contacts among world leaders, especially in developing countries, and the respect accorded to her by governments and human rights activists.
ON Sunday Mary Robinson, right, former President of Ireland, will give a lecture in Omagh Leisure Complex.
The lecture entitled 'Learning to Heal Together lessons from Omagh to the world and from the world to Omagh' will reflect on the good which has emerged, and continues to emerge from the terrible atrocity of the Omagh bomb which devastated the town and the community five years ago. The lecture will be followed by a question and answer session, and the evening will be chaired by Dr John Dunlop, former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.
This event marks a move into a new phase of acknowledgement of the event of 15 August 1998, as Omagh begins to share with the wider world the knowledge, skills and experience learned from the past. In the five years since the bomb all sections of the community have worked with courage and determination to rebuild their lives and their town, and have learned much which can help others develop a strong, united community spirit. In a broader context, there are many communities which have overcome adversity and gone on to flourish through co-operation and a sense of shared purpose and in her address Mrs Robinson will draw on her broad range of experience to highlight how we in Omagh can learn from them.
Mary Robinson, a barrister by profession, was inaugurated as the seventh President of Ireland, and the first female president, on 3 December 1990, and served for seven years until September 1997 when she took up the post of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. She brought to the presidency legal knowledge, deep intellect and political experience. She took on the issue of what she called the 'diaspora', the vast number of Irish emigrants and people of Irish descent.
She also literally changed the face of Anglo-Irish relations, visiting Britain and in one particular epoch making moment, became the first Irish president to visit Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. She welcomed visits by senior British royals, most notably the Prince of Wales to her residence Aras an Uachtarain.
Mary Robinson became High Commissioner for Human Rights in September 1997, following her nomination to the post by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the endorsement of the General Assembly. She assumed responsibility for the UN human rights programme at a time of great change. As High Commissioner; Mrs Robinson gave priority to implementing the reform proposal of Secretary General Kofi Annan to integrate human rights concerns in all the activities of the United Nations.
She also oversaw a reorientation of the priorities of her Office, which increasingly focused its work where it matters most at the country and regional levels. As part of this focus, she travelled during her first year as High Commissioner to Rwanda, South Africa, Colombia and Cambodia, among other countries.
In September 1998, she was the first High Commissioner to visit China, signing an agreement that should lead to a wide-ranging programme of cooperation for the improvement of human rights in that country. Under a similar process, the High Commissioner has sent human rights workers to Indonesia and to countries in Europe and Africa. Mrs Robinson has also strengthened human rights monitoring in such conflict areas as Kosovo, in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
In September 2002 Mary Robinson completed her term as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and became Executive Director of the Ethical Globalization Initiative. The Initiative will draw on her experience and leadership in the field of human rights, her extensive network of contacts among world leaders, especially in developing countries, and the respect accorded to her by governments and human rights activists.
Further Information
Publisher: ULSTER HERALD
Ref: UH/1568
Published Date: 14-Aug-03
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