Mary Robinson
Encyclopedia
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson (née
Bourke) served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland
from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister
, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate
(1969–1989). She defeated Fianna Fáil
's Brian Lenihan and Fine Gael
's Austin Currie
in the 1990 presidential election
becoming, as an Independent candidate nominated by the Labour Party
, the Workers' Party
and independent senators, the first elected president in the office's history not to have had the support of Fianna Fáil.
She is widely regarded as a transformative figure in the presidency of Ireland, who revitalised and liberalised a previously conservative, low-profile political office. She resigned the presidency two months ahead of the end of her term of office to take up her post in the United Nations
. Robinson has been Honorary President of Oxfam International since 2002 and of the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation EIUC since 2005, she is Chair of the International Institute for Environment and Development
(IIED) and is also a founding member and Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders
. Robinson is also one of the European members of the Trilateral Commission
.
She serves on many boards including as chair of the GAVI Alliance (until 2010). Robinson’s newest project is Realizing Rights: the Ethical Globalization Initiative, which fosters equitable trade and decent work, promotes the right to health and more humane migration policies, works to strengthen women's leadership and encourage corporate responsibility. The organisation also supports capacity building and good governance
in developing countries. She is Chancellor of the University of Dublin
. Since 2004, she has also been Professor of Practice in International Affairs at Columbia University, where she teaches international human rights. Robinson also visits other colleges and universities where she lectures on human rights. Mary also sits on the Board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation
, an organisation which supports good governance and great leadership in Africa, and is a member of the Foundation’s Ibrahim Prize
Committee.
In 2004, she received Amnesty International
's Ambassador of Conscience Award
for her work in promoting human rights
.
, County Mayo
, in 1944, she is the daughter of two medical doctors. Her father was Dr. Aubrey Bourke of Ballina, County Mayo, while her mother was from Donegal
, Dr. Tessa Bourke (née
O'Donnell) of Carndonagh
, Inishowen
. The Hiberno-Norman
Bourkes have been in Mayo since the thirteenth century. Her family had links with many diverse political strands in Ireland. One ancestor was a leading activist in the Irish National Land League
of Mayo and the Irish Republican Brotherhood
; an uncle, Sir Paget John Bourke, was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II
after a career as a judge in the Colonial Service; while another relative was a Roman Catholic nun. Some branches of the family were members of the Anglican
Church of Ireland
while others were Roman Catholics
. More distant relatives included William Liath de Burgh
, Tiobóid mac Walter Ciotach Bourke
, and Charles Bourke
. Robinson was therefore born into a family that was a historical mix of rebels against and servants of the Crown.
Mary Bourke attended Mount Anville Secondary School
in Dublin and studied law at Trinity College, Dublin
and Harvard Law School
. In her twenties, she was appointed Reid Professor of Law in the college, considered to be a prestigious appointment made to accomplished lawyers. Subsequent holders of the title have included her successor as Irish president Mary McAleese
, Professor John F. Larkin Q.C., Irish Human Rights Commissioner and prominent pro-choice
activist Senator Ivana Bacik
.
In 1970 she married Nicholas Robinson. Despite the fact that her family had close links to the Church of Ireland
, her marriage to a Protestant student caused a rift with her parents, who did not attend her wedding, although the rift was eventually overcome in subsequent months. Together they have three children. Her son Aubrey, a photographer and film-maker who is "committed to social justice", received media attention when he participated in a protest by the Occupy movement
in 2011.
in 1979, where she served until 1983. However she first hit national headlines as one of University of Dublin's three members of Seanad Éireann
to which she was first elected, as an independent
candidate, in 1969. From this body she campaigned on a wide range of liberal issues, including the right of women to sit on juries, the then requirement that all women upon marriage resign from the civil service, and the right to the legal availability of contraception
. This latter campaign won her many enemies. Condoms and other items were regularly sent in the post to the senator by conservative critics and a false rumour was spread that the chain of pharmacies Hayes, Conyngham Robinson was owned by her family (and so therefore that her promotion of contraception was an attempt to benefit members of her family). So unpopular was her campaign among fellow politicians that when she introduced the first bill proposing to liberalise the law on contraception into the senate, no other member would agree to 'second' the initiative and so it could not be further discussed. As a senator she served on the following parliamentary committees:
For many years Robinson also worked as legal advisor for the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform
with future Trinity College senator David Norris. Coincidentally, just as Mary McAleese
replaced Mary Robinson as Reid Professor of Law in Trinity, and would succeed her to the Irish presidency, so Robinson replaced McAleese in the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform.
Robinson initially served in the Irish upper house as an independent senator, but in the mid 1970s she joined the Labour Party. Subsequently she attempted to be elected to Dáil Éireann
(the lower house) but her efforts were unsuccessful, as were her efforts to be elected to Dublin Corporation
. Robinson, along with hundreds of thousands of other Irish people, clashed with Dublin Corporation when it planned to built its new administrative headquarters on Wood Quay
, one of Europe's best preserved Viking sites. Though Robinson and people who in the past might not have espoused her causes, fought a determined battle, Wood Quay was ultimately bulldozed and concreted over, to build the controversial Civic Offices.
In 1982, the Labour Party entered into a coalition government with Fine Gael
. When Peter Sutherland
was appointed the Republic of Ireland
's European Commissioner, Labour demanded the choice of the next Attorney General
. Many expected Robinson to be the choice, but the party leader instead picked an unknown, new senior counsel called John Rogers
. Shortly afterwards, Robinson resigned from the party in protest at the Anglo-Irish Agreement
that the coalition under Garret FitzGerald
had signed with the British Government of Margaret Thatcher
. Robinson argued that unionist politicians in Northern Ireland
should have been consulted as part of the deal, despite their reluctance to share power.
Robinson remained in the Seanad for four more years, although at this point many of the issues she had campaigned for had been tackled. Contraception had been legalised although heavily restricted, women were on juries, and the marriage bar on women in the civil service had been revoked. To the surprise of many, she decided not to seek re-election to the senate in 1989. One year later, however, Labour approached her about the Irish presidency, for which an election was to be held. She thought she was being asked her legal advice about the type of policy programme party leader Dick Spring
was proposing. However, as she read the briefing notes, she began to realise that the programme was aimed at her. After some consideration, she agreed to become the first Labour nominee for the presidency and the first woman candidate in what was only the second presidential election to be contested by three candidates since 1945.
Few, even in the Labour Party, gave Robinson much chance of winning the presidency, not least because of an internal party row over her nomination. With the Labour Party the first name for a possible candidate was an elderly former minister for Health, and hero to the left, Noel Browne
. Browne was a household name for having done more than anybody else in Ireland for tackling Tuberculosis
in the 1950s. However Browne's relationship with the Labour Party had been stormy. He was critical of its ties with Fine Gael
and had co-founded the short lived Socialist Labour Party in 1977 after leaving the Labour Party. Although he was supported by left wing members within Labour such as Michael D. Higgins
, he had little or no contact with Dick Spring
and therefore had to live in hope of being nominated without the endorsement of the party leadership. The possibility that Browne might be nominated raised the possibility of an internal argument within the party. The fact that Browne was enthusiastic for candidacy, in a contest where Labour never before contested, now acted as pressure for Labour to find a candidate. Spring did not feel that he could control Browne for the duration of the election, given Browne's history of defying party policy to such a degree that Browne had to leave several political parties. In these circumstances the decision to propose Robinson proved to be politically inspired. Robinson had an advantage in being the first candidate nominated for the election (and the first female), in that she could cover more meetings, public addresses and interviews. However she refused to be drawn on specifics in case she would alienate possible support. Robinson also received the backing of the Irish Times newspaper, and this proved hugely advantageous.
. Fine Gael, having gambled that former Taoiseach
Garret FitzGerald
would run as its candidate (even though he had insisted for two years that he would not run for office) then approached another senior figure, Peter Barry, who had previously been willing to run but had run out of patience and was no longer interested. The party ultimately nominated the former civil rights
campaigner Austin Currie
, a respected new TD
and former minister in Brian Faulkner
's power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland from 1973–74. Currie had little experience in the politics of the Republic and was widely seen as the party's last choice, nominated only when no-one else was available. Fianna Fáil
chose Tánaiste
and Minister for Defence
, Brian Lenihan. Lenihan was popular and widely seen as humorous and intelligent. Like Robinson he had himself delivered liberal policy reform (abolished censorship in the 1960s, for example), and he was seen as a near certainty to win the presidency. The only question asked was whether Robinson would beat Currie and come second.
However, as the campaign proceeded, it became apparent that Lenihan's victory was by no means a foregone conclusion, and that Robinson was a serious contender. Crucial to her appeal was the deep unpopularity of the then Taoiseach Charles Haughey
and the rising popularity of the Labour Party leader Dick Spring
. Notwithstanding, Fianna Fáil knew they could count on Lenihan to mount a barnstorming campaign in the last few weeks.
which was strong in Dublin and was considered crucial to getting working class votes. Robinson had proved superior media skills to both alternative candidates, and only now had to compete with the Fianna Fáil party election machine.
At this point a transfer pact was decided upon between Fine Gael and Labour, as both parties were normally preferred partners for each other in general elections. However the Fine Gael candidate felt shortchanged by this deal as the media was more interested in the Robinson campaign, and privately he did not like Robinson. Currie later remarked that Lenihan was his personal friend, and that he felt personally sick at being asked to endorse somebody he did not like, for the sake of beating Lenihan. The possibility of transfers increased Robinson's chances if only Lenihan could be further weakened.
It emerged during the campaign that what Lenihan had told friends and insiders in private flatly contradicted his public statements on a controversial effort in 1982 by the then opposition Fianna Fáil to pressure President Hillery
into refusing a parliamentary dissolution to then Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald; Hillery had resolutely rejected the pressure.
Lenihan denied he had pressured the President but then a tape was produced of an 'on the record' interview he had given to a postgraduate student the previous May in which he frankly discussed attempting to apply pressure. Lenihan claimed that "on mature recollection" he hadn't pressured the President and had been confused in his interview with the student. But the government threatened to fall over the issue.
Within days, the "unbeatable candidate" was dismissed as Tánaiste
and Minister for Defence. Lenihan's integrity for the highest office in the land was seriously questioned. Lenihan's role in the event in 1982, seemed to imply that he could be instructed by Haughey in his duties, and that in effect electing Lenihan was in effect empowering the controversial Haughey.
In a pointless effort to weaken Robinson a government minister and Haughey ally, Pádraig Flynn
launched a controversial personal attack on Mary Robinson "as a wife and mother" and "having a new-found interest in her family". Flynn, even more controversially, also joked privately that Robinson would "turn the Áras into the Red Cow Inn". Flynn's tirade was itself attacked in response as "disgraceful" on live radio by Michael McDowell
, a senior member of the Progressive Democrats
, then in coalition with Fianna Fáil and up to that point supporting Lenihan's campaign. When Robinson met McDowell later in a restaurant, she quipped, "with enemies like McDowell
, who needs friends?" Flynn's attack was a fatal blow to Lenihan's campaign, causing many female supporters of Lenihan to vote for Robinson in a gesture of support.
Lenihan's supported evaporated, and Haughey concluded that the election was as good as lost. Haughey distanced himself from Lenihan, as he did not want any share in the blame. This had unintended consequences, as disquiet with the Fianna Fáil organisation concerning Haughey's leadership increased dramatically. An episode of an RTÉ
current affairs television program featured Fianna Fáil members in Roscommon openly attacking Haughey's leadership and character. Many canvassers now restarted the campaign to get Lenihan elected. However, Lenihan's personal confidence was shattered and although he recovered somewhat in the polls towards the end of the campaign, it was insufficient. Lenihan won the first count with 44% of the first-preference votes — Robinson attaining 39%. However, transfers from Austin Currie proved critical and the majority of these went as expected against Fianna Fáil. Lenihan became the first Fianna Fáil presidential candidate in the history of the office to lose a presidential election. Robinson now became President, the first woman to hold the office, and the first candidate to be second on first preference votes to win the presidency.
Robinson became the first Labour Party candidate, the first woman and the first non-Fianna Fáil candidate in the history of contested presidential elections to win the presidency. Famously, RTÉ
broadcast her victory speech live rather than the Angelus
. Her first television interview as President Elect was on the RTÉ children's television show The Den with Ray D'Arcy
, Zig and Zag (puppets)
and Dustin the Turkey
.
, visiting Britain and became the first Irish president to meet Queen Elizabeth II
at Buckingham Palace. She welcomed visits by senior British royals, most notably the Prince of Wales
to her official residence, Áras an Uachtaráin
.
Her political profile changed also. Charles Haughey
, Taoiseach
when she was elected (and who had had to dismiss her rival, Brian Lenihan when the Progressive Democrats
, the smaller party in government, threatened to leave the government unless he was sacked) had a diffident relationship with her, at one stage preventing her from delivering the prestigious BBC
Dimbleby Lecture. Haughey's successors, Albert Reynolds
(Fianna Fáil: 1992–94), John Bruton
(Fine Gael: 1994–97) and Bertie Ahern
(Fianna Fáil:1997–2008) never hid their admiration of her work, with Bruton's and Ahern's governments actively campaigning to get her the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights post when she sought it.
In the previous 52 years, only one address to the Oireachtas
(parliament) had taken place, by Éamon de Valera
in 1966, on the fiftieth anniversary of the Easter Rising
. Robinson delivered two such Addresses, though they were thought too long and intellectually obscure and not judged a success. She was also invited to chair a committee to review the workings of the United Nations, but declined when asked to by the Irish government, who feared that her involvement might make it difficult for it to oppose the proposals that would result. Controversially, on one trip to Belfast
she met with the local MP, Gerry Adams
, the President of Sinn Féin
.
Foreign Minister Dick Spring, who was leader of the Labour Party, advised her not to meet Adams, whose party was linked with the Provisional IRA. However the Government refused to formally advise her not to meet with him. She felt it would be wrong, in the absence of such formal advice, for her as head of state not to meet the local member of parliament during her visit, and was photographed publicly shaking his hand. During her various visits to Northern Ireland, she in fact regularly met politicians of all hues, including David Trimble
of the Ulster Unionist Party
and John Hume
of the Social Democratic and Labour Party
.
To the surprise of her critics, who had seen her as embodying liberalism that the Catholic Church disapproved of, she had a close working relationship with the Church. She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad regularly, and became the first president to host an Áras reception for the Christian Brothers
. When on a working trip to Rome, she requested, and was granted, an audience with Pope John Paul II
. The outfit she wore was condemned by a controversial young priest, Fr. David O'Hanlon
, in The Irish Times
for supposedly breaking Vatican dress codes on her visit; the Vatican denied that she had — the Vatican dress codes had been changed early in John Paul's pontificate — an analysis echoed by Ireland's Roman Catholic Bishops who distanced themselves from Fr. O' Hanlon's comments.
, a large religious order who ran schools throughout Ireland but had never had its leaders invited to the Áras, to G.L.E.N., the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network
. She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad, Irish famine relief charities, attended international sports events, met the Pope and, to the fury of the People's Republic of China, met the 14th Dalai Lama
. She famously put a special symbolic light in her kitchen window in Áras an Uachtaráin which was visible to the public as it overlooked the principal public view of the building, as a sign of remembering Irish emigrants around the world. (Placing a light in a darkened window to guide the way of strangers was an old Irish folk custom.) Robinson's symbolic light became an acclaimed symbol of an Ireland thinking about its sons and daughters around the world. Famously, she visited Rwanda where she brought world attention to the suffering in that state in the aftermath of its civil war. After her visit, she spoke at a press conference, where she became visibly emotional. As a lawyer trained to be rational, she was furious at her emotion, but it moved everyone who saw it. One media critic who had slated her presidential ideas in 1990, journalist and Sunday Tribune
editor Vincent Browne
passed her a note at the end of the press conference saying simply "you were magnificent."
Browne's comments matched the attitudes of Irish people on Robinson's achievements as president between 1990 and 1997. By half way through her term of office her popularity rating reached an unheard of 93%.
In one of her roles as president, the signing into laws of Bills passed by the Oireachtas she was called upon to sign two very significant Bills that she had fought for throughout her political career. A Bill to fully liberalise the law on the availability of contraceptives, and a law fully decriminalising homosexuality
and unlike Britain and much of the world at the time, providing for a fully equal age of consent
, treating heterosexuals and LGBT
people alike.
. Upon her resignation as president the role of president (acting head of state
) was transferred to the Presidential Commission
(which comprised the Chief Justice
, the Ceann Comhairle
of the Dáil and the Cathaoirleach
of the Seanad) from 12 September to 11 November 1997, when the new president Mary McAleese
was sworn in.
to assume an advocacy as opposed to administrative role, in other words to become a public campaigner outlining principles rather than the previous implementational and consensus-building model. The belief was that the post had ceased to be seen as the voice of general principles and had become largely bureaucratic. Robinson's role was to set the human rights agenda within the organisation and internationally, refocusing its appeal.
In November 1997, still new to her post, Robinson delivered the Romanes Lecture
in Oxford
on the topic of "Realizing Human Rights"; she spoke of the "daunting challenge" ahead of her, and how she intended to set about her task. She concluded the lecture with words from The Golden Bough
: "If fate has called you, the bough will come easily, and of its own accord. Otherwise, no matter how much strength you muster, you never will manage to quell it or cut it down with the toughest of blades."
Robinson was the first High Commissioner for Human Rights to visit Tibet
, making her trip in 1998. During her tenure she criticised the Irish system of permits for non-EU
immigrants as similar to "bonded labour" and criticised the United States' use of capital punishment
. Though she had initially announced her intention to serve a single four-year period, she extended the term by a year following an appeal from Annan, allowing her to preside over the 2001 World Conference against Racism in Durban
, South Africa, as Secretary-General. Robinson's posting as High Commissioner ended in 2002, after sustained pressure from the United States led her to declare she was no longer able to continue her work. Robinson had criticised the US for violating human rights in its war on terrorism
and the World Conference against Racism was widely condemned in the US for its perceived anti-semitism
. Michael Rubin even went so far as to suggest that she be tried for war crimes for presiding over "an intellectual pogrom against Jews and Israel."
United States Congressman Tom Lantos faulted her for neglecting "to provide the leadership to keep the conference on track" and accused her of shouldering "much of the responsibility for the debacle."
On 9 November 2006 in Yogyakarta, she attended the international Conference, then she became one of 29 signators of the Yogyakarta Principles
, adopted for protection of LGBT
rights by International Human Rights Law
.
, and Desmond Tutu
convened a group of world leaders to contribute their wisdom, independent leadership and integrity to tackle some of the world's toughest problems. Nelson Mandela announced the formation of this new group, The Elders
, in a speech he delivered on the occasion of his 89th birthday.
Archbishop Tutu will serve as the Chair of The Elders. The founding members of this group also include Graça Machel
, Kofi Annan
, Ela Bhatt
, Gro Harlem Brundtland
, Jimmy Carter
, Li Zhaoxing
and Muhammad Yunus
.
"This group can speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken," Mandela commented. "Together we will work to support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict, and inspire hope where there is despair."
The Elders will be independently funded by a group of Founders, including Richard Branson
, Peter Gabriel
, Ray Chambers; Michael Chambers; Bridgeway Foundation; Pam Omidyar, Humanity United; Amy Robbins; Shashi Ruia, Dick Tarlow; and the United Nations Foundation
.
She is a member of the Club of Madrid
.
of University of Dublin
(i.e. Trinity College). She represented the University in the Senate for over twenty years and held the Reid Chair in Law.
and the University of Cambridge
.
In 1997 she was one of the two winners of the North-South Prize
.
In 2002 she was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize
for her outstanding work as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and in 2003 the prestigious Otto Hahn Peace Medal
in Gold of the United Nations Association of Germany in Berlin.
In 2004, Mary Robinson was awarded an Honorary Degree by McGill University
.
In March 2005, Robinson gave a lecture entitled "Human Rights and Ethical Globalization"
at the University of San Diego
's Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Distinguished Lecture Series.
In May 2005 she was awarded the first "Outspoken" award from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC).
In October 2006 she was awarded the Social Science Principes de Asturias Prize. The jury commended her for
"offering her non-conformist, brave and far-reaching voice to those who cannot speak for themselves or can barely be heard." In the same month she was the keynote speaker at The Future of International Criminal Justice Symposium hosted by the Penn State Dickinson School of Law, where she spoke on "The Rule of Law and International Human Rights in Challenging Times".
In 2007, she joined the Arab Democracy Foundation
as a founding member of its Board of Trustees.
In January 2009, Robinson was appointed as head of the International Commission of Jurists
.
In September 2009, she was awarded the 2009 Inamori Ethics Prize by Case Western Reserve University
where she gave a lecture entitled "New Challenges to Human Rights in the 21st Century" at Severance Hall in Cleveland, OH. In the same month, she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Bath
at the 1100th anniversary celebration of the Diocese of Bath and Wells, where she gave a lecture entitled "Realising rights: the role of religion in human rights in the future".
On 29 September 2010, at a ceremony in Dublin, Mary Robinson received a knighthood from the Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem. As a former Head of State and in recognition of her significant contribution towards human rights she was awarded the honour of Dame Grand Cross of Merit.
. The World Justice Project
works to lead a global, multidisciplinary effort to strengthen the Rule of Law
for the development of communities of opportunity and equity.
AWEPA
Robinson currently serves on the Eminent Advisory Board of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa (AWEPA
), which has been used as a platform to promote her messages on issues such as the Famine in the Horn of Africa.
, the highest civilian honour awarded by the United States. In presenting the award to Robinson, U.S. President Barack Obama said "Mary Robinson learned early on what it takes to make sure all voices are heard. As a crusader for women and those without a voice in Ireland, Mary Robinson was the first woman elected President of Ireland, before being appointed U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. When she traveled abroad as President, she would place a light in her window that would draw people of Irish descent to pass by below. Today, as an advocate for the hungry and the hunted, the forgotten and the ignored, Mary Robinson has not only shone a light on human suffering, but illuminated a better future for our world."
Amnesty International congratulated Mary Robinson on being named as a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. "Mary Robinson has long defended the rights of the underdog and has never shirked from speaking truth to power,” said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International. "As an outspoken, passionate and forceful advocate for human rights and human dignity in all regions of the world, Mary Robinson has helped countless individuals from Sierra Leone to Rwanda to the Balkans to Somalia and to the Middle East," she continued. Nelson Mandela and Graca Machel also congratulated Robinson on her acceptance of the award.
The award was criticised by some American and European Jewish groups, while other groups offered support for the award. Parties opposed to the award included AIPAC
, the Anti-Defamation League
, the European Jewish Congress, and John R. Bolton
. John R. Bolton, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations, stated that those in the administration who recommended her either ignored her anti-Israel history, or missed it entirely. On the other hand, a group of Israel
i human rights
organizations including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Bimkom, B'Tselem, Gisha, Hamoked, Physicians for Human Rights and Yesh Din, stated "as leaders of a sector within Israeli civil society that monitors and often criticizes government and military policy for violating human rights, we do not see such actions as plausible reason for denying Mrs. Robinson the award." In response to the protests by some Jewish groups and commentators, Robinson said she was “surprised and dismayed” and that "this is old, recycled, untrue stuff,” “I have been very critical of the Palestinian side. My conduct continues to be on the side of tackling anti-Semitism and discrimination,” Robinson said. "There's a lot of bullying by certain elements of the Jewish community. They bully people who try to address the severe situation in Gaza and the West Bank. Archbishop Desmond Tutu gets the same criticism," Robinson also said. In an open letter to Robinson, Hillel Neuer
, executive director of UN Watch
, rejected Robinson's claim at being misunderstood or bullied by those who criticize her role in Durban. He said that she failed to confront purveyors of anti-Israel rhetoric. "You may not have been the chief culprit of the Durban debacle, but you will always be its preeminent symbol", he added. When asked about the opposition to the award by AIPAC and other Jewish groups, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs replied "Mary Robinson was the first female President of Ireland, and she is somebody whom we are honoring as a prominent crusader of women's rights in Ireland and throughout the world."
United States Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, United States Senate Assistant Majoriy Leader Dick Durbin, and some other legislators welcomed the presenting of the award to Robinson." Forty-five Republican Congressmen sent a letter to President Obama raised issue with the presentation citing "her failed, biased record as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights".
In a letter to President Obama, Nancy Rubin, a former American ambassador to the UN Human Rights Commission, welcomed the award and praised Robinson as a "dedicated crusader for human rights for all people". Oxfam
confederation also expressed its strong support for Robinson. The Council of Women World Leaders, the Champalimaud Foundation, and the ImagineNations Group
welcomed the presentation of the Medal of Freedom to Robinson.
The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission congratulated Robinson, saying she "helped advance recognition of the human rights of LGBT people in her capacity as President of Ireland and as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. She has been unwavering in her passionate call to end torture, persecution, and discrimination against LGBT people globally."
NEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...
Bourke) served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland
President of Ireland
The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...
from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is a United Nations agency that works to promote and protect the human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948...
, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
(1969–1989). She defeated Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
's Brian Lenihan and Fine Gael
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
's Austin Currie
Austin Currie
Austin Currie is a former politician who was elected to the parliaments of both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland....
in the 1990 presidential election
Irish presidential election, 1990
-Aftermath:While the role of the presidency in day to day politics is a very limited one the Robinson presidency is regarded by many observers as a watershed in Irish society symbolising the shift away from the conservative ultracatholic male-dominated Ireland which existed up until the end of the...
becoming, as an Independent candidate nominated by the Labour Party
Labour Party (Ireland)
The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland. The Labour Party was founded in 1912 in Clonmel, County Tipperary, by James Connolly, James Larkin and William X. O'Brien as the political wing of the Irish Trade Union Congress. Unlike the other main Irish...
, the Workers' Party
Workers' Party of Ireland
The Workers' Party is a left-wing republican political party in Ireland. Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970 after a split within the party, adopting its current name in 1982....
and independent senators, the first elected president in the office's history not to have had the support of Fianna Fáil.
She is widely regarded as a transformative figure in the presidency of Ireland, who revitalised and liberalised a previously conservative, low-profile political office. She resigned the presidency two months ahead of the end of her term of office to take up her post in the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
. Robinson has been Honorary President of Oxfam International since 2002 and of the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation EIUC since 2005, she is Chair of the International Institute for Environment and Development
International Institute for Environment and Development
The International Institute for Environment and Development is a London-based policy research centre and think tank.- History :IIED was established by the economist Barbara Ward in 1971...
(IIED) and is also a founding member and Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders
Council of Women World Leaders
The Council of Women World Leaders is a network of current and former women prime ministers and presidents established in 1996 by Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, President of Iceland and first woman in the world to be democratically elected president, and Laura Liswood, Secretary General...
. Robinson is also one of the European members of the Trilateral Commission
Trilateral Commission
The Trilateral Commission is a non-governmental, non-partisan discussion group founded by David Rockefeller in July 1973 to foster closer cooperation among the United States, Europe and Japan.-History:...
.
She serves on many boards including as chair of the GAVI Alliance (until 2010). Robinson’s newest project is Realizing Rights: the Ethical Globalization Initiative, which fosters equitable trade and decent work, promotes the right to health and more humane migration policies, works to strengthen women's leadership and encourage corporate responsibility. The organisation also supports capacity building and good governance
Good governance
Good governance is an indeterminate term used in development literature to describe how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources in order to guarantee the realization of human rights. Governance describes "the process of decision-making and the process by which...
in developing countries. She is Chancellor of the University of Dublin
University of Dublin
The University of Dublin , corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin , located in Dublin, Ireland, was effectively founded when in 1592 Queen Elizabeth I issued a charter for Trinity College, Dublin, as "the mother of a university" – this date making it...
. Since 2004, she has also been Professor of Practice in International Affairs at Columbia University, where she teaches international human rights. Robinson also visits other colleges and universities where she lectures on human rights. Mary also sits on the Board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation
Mo Ibrahim Foundation
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation was launched in October 2006 to support good governance and great leadership in Africa.It was founded by Dr.Mo Ibrahim, a Sudanese philanthropist and businessman who founded telecommunications company Celtel International in 1998....
, an organisation which supports good governance and great leadership in Africa, and is a member of the Foundation’s Ibrahim Prize
Ibrahim Prize
The Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership is awarded by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation to African heads of state who deliver security, health, education and economic development to their constituents, and who democratically transfer power to their successor. It was sponsored by Mo...
Committee.
In 2004, she received Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
's Ambassador of Conscience Award
Ambassador of Conscience Award
The Ambassador of Conscience Award is Amnesty International's most prestigious human rights award. It is given annually to individuals who show exceptional leadership in the fight to protect and promote human rights and human conscience...
for her work in promoting human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
.
Background
Born Mary Therese Winifred Bourke in BallinaBallina, County Mayo
Ballina is a large town in north County Mayo in Ireland. It lies at the mouth of the River Moy near Killala Bay, in the Moy valley and Parish of Kilmoremoy, with the Ox Mountain range to the east and the Nephin Beg mountains to the west...
, County Mayo
County Mayo
County Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...
, in 1944, she is the daughter of two medical doctors. Her father was Dr. Aubrey Bourke of Ballina, County Mayo, while her mother was from Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Dr. Tessa Bourke (née
NEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...
O'Donnell) of Carndonagh
Carndonagh
Carndonagh is a town on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland and is home to the Irish Space Exploration Mission. The town is located near Malin Head, the most northerly point of Ireland and lies close to the shores of Trawbeaga Bay...
, Inishowen
Inishowen
Inishowen is a peninsula in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in the north of Ireland. It is also the largest peninsula in all of Ireland. Inishowen is a picturesque location with a rich history...
. The Hiberno-Norman
Hiberno-Norman
The Hiberno-Normans are those Norman lords who settled in Ireland who admitted little if any real fealty to the Anglo-Norman settlers in England, and who soon began to interact and intermarry with the Gaelic nobility of Ireland. The term embraces both their origins as a distinct community with...
Bourkes have been in Mayo since the thirteenth century. Her family had links with many diverse political strands in Ireland. One ancestor was a leading activist in the Irish National Land League
Irish National Land League
The Irish Land League was an Irish political organization of the late 19th century which sought to help poor tenant farmers. Its primary aim was to abolish landlordism in Ireland and enable tenant farmers to own the land they worked on...
of Mayo and the Irish Republican Brotherhood
Irish Republican Brotherhood
The Irish Republican Brotherhood was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland during the second half of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century...
; an uncle, Sir Paget John Bourke, was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
after a career as a judge in the Colonial Service; while another relative was a Roman Catholic nun. Some branches of the family were members of the Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
while others were Roman Catholics
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. More distant relatives included William Liath de Burgh
William Liath de Burgh
-Background:De Burgh was a son of William Og de Burgh, who was killed at the Battle of Áth-an-Chip or Athankip in 1270, and a nephew of Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster...
, Tiobóid mac Walter Ciotach Bourke
Tiobóid mac Walter Ciotach Bourke
-Reference:* The History of Mayo, Hubert T. Knox. 1908.* Lower Mac William and Viscounts of Mayo, 1332-1649, in A New History of Ireland IX, pp. 235–36, Oxford, 1984 ....
, and Charles Bourke
Charles Bourke
-Background:Bourke was born in Carrowcubick, near Ballycastle, County Mayo, about 1765. Brendan Hoban states that he "was of that branch fo the Bourke family that became known as the 'Heathfield' Bourkes, who base was at Heathfield House, in the townland of Gortatoor, a few miles from what is now...
. Robinson was therefore born into a family that was a historical mix of rebels against and servants of the Crown.
Mary Bourke attended Mount Anville Secondary School
Mount Anville Secondary School
Mount Anville Secondary School is a Roman Catholic, private all-girls post-primary school in Goatstown in Ireland. It was originally an all-boarding school, but in recent years due to decreased demand for such schools it has become a day-school...
in Dublin and studied law at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
. In her twenties, she was appointed Reid Professor of Law in the college, considered to be a prestigious appointment made to accomplished lawyers. Subsequent holders of the title have included her successor as Irish president Mary McAleese
Mary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...
, Professor John F. Larkin Q.C., Irish Human Rights Commissioner and prominent pro-choice
Pro-choice
Support for the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-choice movement, a sociopolitical movement supporting the ethical view that a woman should have the legal right to elective abortion, meaning the right to terminate her pregnancy....
activist Senator Ivana Bacik
Ivana Bacik
Ivana Catherine Bacik is an Irish politician and academic. She has been Reid Professor of Criminal Law, Criminology and Penology at Trinity College, Dublin Law School since 1996, and was a made a Fellow of Trinity College Dublin in 2005. She was elected a Senator for the University of Dublin...
.
In 1970 she married Nicholas Robinson. Despite the fact that her family had close links to the Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
, her marriage to a Protestant student caused a rift with her parents, who did not attend her wedding, although the rift was eventually overcome in subsequent months. Together they have three children. Her son Aubrey, a photographer and film-maker who is "committed to social justice", received media attention when he participated in a protest by the Occupy movement
Occupy movement
The Occupy movement is an international protest movement which is primarily directed against economic and social inequality. The first Occupy protest to be widely covered was Occupy Wall Street in New York City, taking place on September 17, 2011...
in 2011.
Career in Seanad Éireann
Robinson's early political career included election to Dublin City CouncilDublin City Council
Dublin City Council is the local authority for the city of Dublin in Ireland. It has 52 members and is the largest local authority in Ireland. Until 2001, it was known as Dublin Corporation.-Legal status:...
in 1979, where she served until 1983. However she first hit national headlines as one of University of Dublin's three members of Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
to which she was first elected, as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
candidate, in 1969. From this body she campaigned on a wide range of liberal issues, including the right of women to sit on juries, the then requirement that all women upon marriage resign from the civil service, and the right to the legal availability of contraception
Birth control
Birth control is an umbrella term for several techniques and methods used to prevent fertilization or to interrupt pregnancy at various stages. Birth control techniques and methods include contraception , contragestion and abortion...
. This latter campaign won her many enemies. Condoms and other items were regularly sent in the post to the senator by conservative critics and a false rumour was spread that the chain of pharmacies Hayes, Conyngham Robinson was owned by her family (and so therefore that her promotion of contraception was an attempt to benefit members of her family). So unpopular was her campaign among fellow politicians that when she introduced the first bill proposing to liberalise the law on contraception into the senate, no other member would agree to 'second' the initiative and so it could not be further discussed. As a senator she served on the following parliamentary committees:
- Joint Committee on EC Secondary Legislation (1973–2011 **Chairman of its Social Affairs Sub-Committee (1977–87)
- Chairman of its Legal Affairs Committee (1987–89)
- Joint Committee on Marital Breakdown (1983–1985)
Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform
The Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform was an organisation set up to campaign for the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in the 1970s...
with future Trinity College senator David Norris. Coincidentally, just as Mary McAleese
Mary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...
replaced Mary Robinson as Reid Professor of Law in Trinity, and would succeed her to the Irish presidency, so Robinson replaced McAleese in the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform.
Robinson initially served in the Irish upper house as an independent senator, but in the mid 1970s she joined the Labour Party. Subsequently she attempted to be elected to Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
(the lower house) but her efforts were unsuccessful, as were her efforts to be elected to Dublin Corporation
Dublin Corporation
Dublin Corporation , known by generations of Dubliners simply as The Corpo, is the former name given to the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin between 1661 and 1 January 2002...
. Robinson, along with hundreds of thousands of other Irish people, clashed with Dublin Corporation when it planned to built its new administrative headquarters on Wood Quay
Wood Quay
Wood Quay is a riverside area of Dublin that was a site of Viking settlement. Dublin Corporation acquired Wood Quay gradually between 1950 and 1975, finally announcing that it would be the location of their new offices. Finds made during the initial excavation of the site led to a massive, but...
, one of Europe's best preserved Viking sites. Though Robinson and people who in the past might not have espoused her causes, fought a determined battle, Wood Quay was ultimately bulldozed and concreted over, to build the controversial Civic Offices.
In 1982, the Labour Party entered into a coalition government with Fine Gael
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
. When Peter Sutherland
Peter Sutherland
Peter Denis Sutherland, KCMG is an Irish international businessman and former Attorney General of Ireland, associated with the Fine Gael party . He is a barrister by profession, and is also Senior Counsel at the Irish Bar...
was appointed the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
's European Commissioner, Labour demanded the choice of the next Attorney General
Attorney General of Ireland
The Attorney General is a constitutional officer who is the official adviser to the Government of Ireland in matters of law. He is in effect the chief law officer in Ireland. The Attorney General is not a member of the Government but does participate in cabinet meetings when invited and attends...
. Many expected Robinson to be the choice, but the party leader instead picked an unknown, new senior counsel called John Rogers
John Rogers (Irish lawyer)
John Rogers was the Attorney General of Ireland 1984 – 1987. He was educated at Rockwell College and Trinity College, Dublin.The Labour Party demanded the right to choose the Attorney General in the coalition government of 1984....
. Shortly afterwards, Robinson resigned from the party in protest at the Anglo-Irish Agreement
Anglo-Irish Agreement
The Anglo-Irish Agreement was an agreement between the United Kingdom and Ireland which aimed to help bring an end to the Troubles in Northern Ireland...
that the coalition under Garret FitzGerald
Garret FitzGerald
Garret FitzGerald was an Irish politician who was twice Taoiseach of Ireland, serving in office from July 1981 to February 1982 and again from December 1982 to March 1987. FitzGerald was elected to Seanad Éireann in 1965 and was subsequently elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fine Gael TD in 1969. He...
had signed with the British Government of Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
. Robinson argued that unionist politicians in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
should have been consulted as part of the deal, despite their reluctance to share power.
Robinson remained in the Seanad for four more years, although at this point many of the issues she had campaigned for had been tackled. Contraception had been legalised although heavily restricted, women were on juries, and the marriage bar on women in the civil service had been revoked. To the surprise of many, she decided not to seek re-election to the senate in 1989. One year later, however, Labour approached her about the Irish presidency, for which an election was to be held. She thought she was being asked her legal advice about the type of policy programme party leader Dick Spring
Dick Spring
Richard "Dick" Spring is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was first elected as a Labour Party Teachta Dála in 1981 and retained his seat until 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997...
was proposing. However, as she read the briefing notes, she began to realise that the programme was aimed at her. After some consideration, she agreed to become the first Labour nominee for the presidency and the first woman candidate in what was only the second presidential election to be contested by three candidates since 1945.
Beating Noel Browne for the nomination
Noel Browne
Noël Christopher Browne was an Irish politician and doctor. He holds the distinction of being one of only five Teachtaí Dála to be appointed Minister on their first day in the Dáil. His controversial Mother and Child Scheme in effect brought down the First Inter-Party Government of John A...
. Browne was a household name for having done more than anybody else in Ireland for tackling Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in the 1950s. However Browne's relationship with the Labour Party had been stormy. He was critical of its ties with Fine Gael
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
and had co-founded the short lived Socialist Labour Party in 1977 after leaving the Labour Party. Although he was supported by left wing members within Labour such as Michael D. Higgins
Michael D. Higgins
Michael Daniel Higgins is the ninth and current President of Ireland, having taken office on 11 November 2011 following victory in the 2011 Irish presidential election. Higgins is an Irish politician, poet, sociologist, author and broadcaster. Higgins was President of the Labour Party until his...
, he had little or no contact with Dick Spring
Dick Spring
Richard "Dick" Spring is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was first elected as a Labour Party Teachta Dála in 1981 and retained his seat until 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997...
and therefore had to live in hope of being nominated without the endorsement of the party leadership. The possibility that Browne might be nominated raised the possibility of an internal argument within the party. The fact that Browne was enthusiastic for candidacy, in a contest where Labour never before contested, now acted as pressure for Labour to find a candidate. Spring did not feel that he could control Browne for the duration of the election, given Browne's history of defying party policy to such a degree that Browne had to leave several political parties. In these circumstances the decision to propose Robinson proved to be politically inspired. Robinson had an advantage in being the first candidate nominated for the election (and the first female), in that she could cover more meetings, public addresses and interviews. However she refused to be drawn on specifics in case she would alienate possible support. Robinson also received the backing of the Irish Times newspaper, and this proved hugely advantageous.
Candidates from other parties
Robinson's campaign was boosted by a lack of organisation in the main opposition party: Fine GaelFine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
. Fine Gael, having gambled that former Taoiseach
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...
Garret FitzGerald
Garret FitzGerald
Garret FitzGerald was an Irish politician who was twice Taoiseach of Ireland, serving in office from July 1981 to February 1982 and again from December 1982 to March 1987. FitzGerald was elected to Seanad Éireann in 1965 and was subsequently elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fine Gael TD in 1969. He...
would run as its candidate (even though he had insisted for two years that he would not run for office) then approached another senior figure, Peter Barry, who had previously been willing to run but had run out of patience and was no longer interested. The party ultimately nominated the former civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
campaigner Austin Currie
Austin Currie
Austin Currie is a former politician who was elected to the parliaments of both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland....
, a respected new TD
Teachta Dála
A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...
and former minister in Brian Faulkner
Brian Faulkner
Arthur Brian Deane Faulkner, Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, PC was the sixth and last Prime Minister of Northern Ireland from March 1971 until his resignation in March 1972...
's power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland from 1973–74. Currie had little experience in the politics of the Republic and was widely seen as the party's last choice, nominated only when no-one else was available. Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
chose Tánaiste
Tánaiste
The Tánaiste is the deputy prime minister of Ireland. The current Tánaiste is Eamon Gilmore, TD who was appointed on 9 March 2011.- Origins and etymology :...
and Minister for Defence
Minister for Defence (Ireland)
The Minister for Defence is the senior minister at the Department of Defence in the Government of Ireland. Under new arrangements this department is being merged with the Department of Justice over which Mr. Shatter will also preside....
, Brian Lenihan. Lenihan was popular and widely seen as humorous and intelligent. Like Robinson he had himself delivered liberal policy reform (abolished censorship in the 1960s, for example), and he was seen as a near certainty to win the presidency. The only question asked was whether Robinson would beat Currie and come second.
However, as the campaign proceeded, it became apparent that Lenihan's victory was by no means a foregone conclusion, and that Robinson was a serious contender. Crucial to her appeal was the deep unpopularity of the then Taoiseach Charles Haughey
Charles Haughey
Charles James "Charlie" Haughey was Taoiseach of Ireland, serving three terms in office . He was also the fourth leader of Fianna Fáil...
and the rising popularity of the Labour Party leader Dick Spring
Dick Spring
Richard "Dick" Spring is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was first elected as a Labour Party Teachta Dála in 1981 and retained his seat until 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997...
. Notwithstanding, Fianna Fáil knew they could count on Lenihan to mount a barnstorming campaign in the last few weeks.
Election campaign
The head start that Robinson attained in the nomination process, and the fact that the Fine Gael candidate was from Northern Ireland, resulted in Robinson attaining second place in the polls. Given that Fine Gael normally received 25% of the election result, and were reduced to third place this was an achievement in itself. She also obtained the backing of the Workers' Party of IrelandWorkers' Party of Ireland
The Workers' Party is a left-wing republican political party in Ireland. Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970 after a split within the party, adopting its current name in 1982....
which was strong in Dublin and was considered crucial to getting working class votes. Robinson had proved superior media skills to both alternative candidates, and only now had to compete with the Fianna Fáil party election machine.
At this point a transfer pact was decided upon between Fine Gael and Labour, as both parties were normally preferred partners for each other in general elections. However the Fine Gael candidate felt shortchanged by this deal as the media was more interested in the Robinson campaign, and privately he did not like Robinson. Currie later remarked that Lenihan was his personal friend, and that he felt personally sick at being asked to endorse somebody he did not like, for the sake of beating Lenihan. The possibility of transfers increased Robinson's chances if only Lenihan could be further weakened.
It emerged during the campaign that what Lenihan had told friends and insiders in private flatly contradicted his public statements on a controversial effort in 1982 by the then opposition Fianna Fáil to pressure President Hillery
Patrick Hillery
Patrick John "Paddy" Hillery was an Irish politician and the sixth President of Ireland from 1976 until 1990. First elected at the 1951 general election as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála for Clare, he remained in Dáil Éireann until 1973...
into refusing a parliamentary dissolution to then Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald; Hillery had resolutely rejected the pressure.
Lenihan denied he had pressured the President but then a tape was produced of an 'on the record' interview he had given to a postgraduate student the previous May in which he frankly discussed attempting to apply pressure. Lenihan claimed that "on mature recollection" he hadn't pressured the President and had been confused in his interview with the student. But the government threatened to fall over the issue.
Within days, the "unbeatable candidate" was dismissed as Tánaiste
Tánaiste
The Tánaiste is the deputy prime minister of Ireland. The current Tánaiste is Eamon Gilmore, TD who was appointed on 9 March 2011.- Origins and etymology :...
and Minister for Defence. Lenihan's integrity for the highest office in the land was seriously questioned. Lenihan's role in the event in 1982, seemed to imply that he could be instructed by Haughey in his duties, and that in effect electing Lenihan was in effect empowering the controversial Haughey.
In a pointless effort to weaken Robinson a government minister and Haughey ally, Pádraig Flynn
Padraig Flynn
Pádraig "Pee" Flynn is a former Irish politician. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála in 1977. He was returned at each subsequent election until 1993...
launched a controversial personal attack on Mary Robinson "as a wife and mother" and "having a new-found interest in her family". Flynn, even more controversially, also joked privately that Robinson would "turn the Áras into the Red Cow Inn". Flynn's tirade was itself attacked in response as "disgraceful" on live radio by Michael McDowell
Michael McDowell
Michael McDowell is a Senior Counsel in the Bar Council of Ireland and a former politician. A grandson of Irish revolutionary Eoin MacNeill, McDowell was a founding member of the Progressive Democrats political party in the mid-1980s...
, a senior member of the Progressive Democrats
Progressive Democrats
The Progressive Democrats , commonly known as the PDs, was a pro-free market liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland.Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Malley and other politicians who had split from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the Progressive Democrats took liberal positions on...
, then in coalition with Fianna Fáil and up to that point supporting Lenihan's campaign. When Robinson met McDowell later in a restaurant, she quipped, "with enemies like McDowell
Michael McDowell
Michael McDowell is a Senior Counsel in the Bar Council of Ireland and a former politician. A grandson of Irish revolutionary Eoin MacNeill, McDowell was a founding member of the Progressive Democrats political party in the mid-1980s...
, who needs friends?" Flynn's attack was a fatal blow to Lenihan's campaign, causing many female supporters of Lenihan to vote for Robinson in a gesture of support.
Lenihan's supported evaporated, and Haughey concluded that the election was as good as lost. Haughey distanced himself from Lenihan, as he did not want any share in the blame. This had unintended consequences, as disquiet with the Fianna Fáil organisation concerning Haughey's leadership increased dramatically. An episode of an RTÉ
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
current affairs television program featured Fianna Fáil members in Roscommon openly attacking Haughey's leadership and character. Many canvassers now restarted the campaign to get Lenihan elected. However, Lenihan's personal confidence was shattered and although he recovered somewhat in the polls towards the end of the campaign, it was insufficient. Lenihan won the first count with 44% of the first-preference votes — Robinson attaining 39%. However, transfers from Austin Currie proved critical and the majority of these went as expected against Fianna Fáil. Lenihan became the first Fianna Fáil presidential candidate in the history of the office to lose a presidential election. Robinson now became President, the first woman to hold the office, and the first candidate to be second on first preference votes to win the presidency.
Robinson became the first Labour Party candidate, the first woman and the first non-Fianna Fáil candidate in the history of contested presidential elections to win the presidency. Famously, RTÉ
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
broadcast her victory speech live rather than the Angelus
Angelus
The Angelus is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The name Angelus is derived from the opening words: Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ The Angelus (Latin for "angel") is a Christian devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The name Angelus is derived from the opening words: Angelus...
. Her first television interview as President Elect was on the RTÉ children's television show The Den with Ray D'Arcy
Ray D'Arcy
Raymond 'Ray' D'Arcy is an Irish television and radio presenter. He currently presents a weekday morning radio programme, The Ray D'Arcy Show, on Today FM...
, Zig and Zag (puppets)
Zig and Zag (puppets)
Zig and Zag are an Irish puppet duo performed by Mick O'Hara and Ciaran Morrison.The characters are a pair of furry extraterrestrial twins from the planet Zog. They made their television début on RTÉs Dempsey's Den in 1987. A year later they won a Jacob's Award for TV Personalities of the year...
and Dustin the Turkey
Dustin the Turkey
Dustin the Turkey is a puppet, "television presenter" and star of RTÉ television's The Den since 1989. A turkey with a strong Dublin accent, Dustin is voiced by John Morrison, brother of Ciaran Morrison who was one of the creators of Zig and Zag. Dustin first appeared on The Den with Zig and Zag in...
.
Presidency
Robinson was inaugurated as the seventh President of Ireland on 3 December 1990. She proved a remarkably popular president, earning the praise of Lenihan himself, who before his death five years later, said that she was a better president than he ever could have been. She took an office that had a reputation as being little more than a retirement position for prominent politicians and breathed new life into the role. Robinson brought to the presidency legal knowledge, deep intellect and political experience. She reached out to the Irish 'diaspora' (the vast number of Irish emigrants and people of Irish descent). She also changed the face of Anglo-Irish relationsAnglo-Irish relations
British–Irish relations, or Anglo-Irish relations, refers to the relationship between the Government of Ireland and the Government of the United Kingdom since most of Ireland gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1922 as the Irish Free State.Relations between the two states have been...
, visiting Britain and became the first Irish president to meet Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
at Buckingham Palace. She welcomed visits by senior British royals, most notably the Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
to her official residence, Áras an Uachtaráin
Áras an Uachtaráin
Áras an Uachtaráin , formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence of the President of Ireland. It is located in the Phoenix Park on the northside of Dublin.-Origins:...
.
Her political profile changed also. Charles Haughey
Charles Haughey
Charles James "Charlie" Haughey was Taoiseach of Ireland, serving three terms in office . He was also the fourth leader of Fianna Fáil...
, Taoiseach
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...
when she was elected (and who had had to dismiss her rival, Brian Lenihan when the Progressive Democrats
Progressive Democrats
The Progressive Democrats , commonly known as the PDs, was a pro-free market liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland.Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Malley and other politicians who had split from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the Progressive Democrats took liberal positions on...
, the smaller party in government, threatened to leave the government unless he was sacked) had a diffident relationship with her, at one stage preventing her from delivering the prestigious BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Dimbleby Lecture. Haughey's successors, Albert Reynolds
Albert Reynolds
Albert Reynolds , served as Taoiseach of Ireland, serving one term in office from 1992 until 1994. He has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize...
(Fianna Fáil: 1992–94), John Bruton
John Bruton
John Gerard Bruton is an Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 1994 to 1997. A minister under two taoisigh, Liam Cosgrave and Garret FitzGerald, Bruton held a number of the top posts in Irish government, including Minister for Finance , and Minister for Industry, Trade,...
(Fine Gael: 1994–97) and Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern
Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....
(Fianna Fáil:1997–2008) never hid their admiration of her work, with Bruton's and Ahern's governments actively campaigning to get her the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights post when she sought it.
In the previous 52 years, only one address to the Oireachtas
Oireachtas
The Oireachtas , sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the "national parliament" or legislature of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of:*The President of Ireland*The two Houses of the Oireachtas :**Dáil Éireann...
(parliament) had taken place, by Éamon de Valera
Éamon de Valera
Éamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...
in 1966, on the fiftieth anniversary of the Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
. Robinson delivered two such Addresses, though they were thought too long and intellectually obscure and not judged a success. She was also invited to chair a committee to review the workings of the United Nations, but declined when asked to by the Irish government, who feared that her involvement might make it difficult for it to oppose the proposals that would result. Controversially, on one trip to Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
she met with the local MP, Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams is an Irish republican politician and Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth. From 1983 to 1992 and from 1997 to 2011, he was an abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. He is the president of Sinn Féin, the second largest political party in Northern...
, the President of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
.
Foreign Minister Dick Spring, who was leader of the Labour Party, advised her not to meet Adams, whose party was linked with the Provisional IRA. However the Government refused to formally advise her not to meet with him. She felt it would be wrong, in the absence of such formal advice, for her as head of state not to meet the local member of parliament during her visit, and was photographed publicly shaking his hand. During her various visits to Northern Ireland, she in fact regularly met politicians of all hues, including David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...
of the Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
and John Hume
John Hume
John Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....
of the Social Democratic and Labour Party
Social Democratic and Labour Party
The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom...
.
To the surprise of her critics, who had seen her as embodying liberalism that the Catholic Church disapproved of, she had a close working relationship with the Church. She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad regularly, and became the first president to host an Áras reception for the Christian Brothers
Congregation of Christian Brothers
The Congregation of Christian Brothers is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Blessed Edmund Rice. The Christian Brothers, as they are commonly known, chiefly work for the evangelisation and education of youth, but are involved in many ministries, especially with...
. When on a working trip to Rome, she requested, and was granted, an audience with Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
. The outfit she wore was condemned by a controversial young priest, Fr. David O'Hanlon
David O'Hanlon (priest)
Father David O'Hanlon is a controversial Irish Roman Catholic priest and theologian. His attacks on the then President of Ireland, on members of the Irish hierarchy and fellow priests, and on the Irish media earned him notoriety...
, in The Irish Times
The Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
for supposedly breaking Vatican dress codes on her visit; the Vatican denied that she had — the Vatican dress codes had been changed early in John Paul's pontificate — an analysis echoed by Ireland's Roman Catholic Bishops who distanced themselves from Fr. O' Hanlon's comments.
Popularity
She invited groups not normally invited to presidential residences to visit her in Áras an Uachtaráin; from the Christian BrothersCongregation of Christian Brothers
The Congregation of Christian Brothers is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Blessed Edmund Rice. The Christian Brothers, as they are commonly known, chiefly work for the evangelisation and education of youth, but are involved in many ministries, especially with...
, a large religious order who ran schools throughout Ireland but had never had its leaders invited to the Áras, to G.L.E.N., the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network
Gay and Lesbian Equality Network
The Gay and Lesbian Equality Network is an Irish non-governmental gay rights group, based in Dublin, Ireland. The organisation was founded in 1988 and focuses mainly on achieving change in legislation and social policy that will achieve full equality and inclusion for lesbian, gay and bisexual ...
. She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad, Irish famine relief charities, attended international sports events, met the Pope and, to the fury of the People's Republic of China, met the 14th Dalai Lama
14th Dalai Lama
The 14th Dalai Lama is the 14th and current Dalai Lama. Dalai Lamas are the most influential figures in the Gelugpa lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, although the 14th has consolidated control over the other lineages in recent years...
. She famously put a special symbolic light in her kitchen window in Áras an Uachtaráin which was visible to the public as it overlooked the principal public view of the building, as a sign of remembering Irish emigrants around the world. (Placing a light in a darkened window to guide the way of strangers was an old Irish folk custom.) Robinson's symbolic light became an acclaimed symbol of an Ireland thinking about its sons and daughters around the world. Famously, she visited Rwanda where she brought world attention to the suffering in that state in the aftermath of its civil war. After her visit, she spoke at a press conference, where she became visibly emotional. As a lawyer trained to be rational, she was furious at her emotion, but it moved everyone who saw it. One media critic who had slated her presidential ideas in 1990, journalist and Sunday Tribune
Sunday Tribune
The Sunday Tribune was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to tabloid. Former editors include Conor Brady, Vincent Browne,...
editor Vincent Browne
Vincent Browne
Vincent Browne is an Irish print and broadcast journalist. He is a columnist with The Irish Times and The Sunday Business Post and a part time barrister....
passed her a note at the end of the press conference saying simply "you were magnificent."
Browne's comments matched the attitudes of Irish people on Robinson's achievements as president between 1990 and 1997. By half way through her term of office her popularity rating reached an unheard of 93%.
In one of her roles as president, the signing into laws of Bills passed by the Oireachtas she was called upon to sign two very significant Bills that she had fought for throughout her political career. A Bill to fully liberalise the law on the availability of contraceptives, and a law fully decriminalising homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
and unlike Britain and much of the world at the time, providing for a fully equal age of consent
Age of consent
While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
, treating heterosexuals and LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
people alike.
Resignation as President
Robinson resigned the presidency before her term of office was complete to take up a new role with the United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
. Upon her resignation as president the role of president (acting head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
) was transferred to the Presidential Commission
Presidential Commission (Ireland)
The Presidential Commission is the collective vice-presidency of Ireland.-Membership:Three members serve on the Presidential Commission.* Chief Justice – President of the Supreme Court* Ceann Comhairle – Presiding officer of Dáil Éireann...
(which comprised the Chief Justice
Chief Justice of Ireland
The Chief Justice of Ireland is the president of the Supreme Court of Ireland.Under Constitution of Ireland, the Chief Justice of Ireland also occupies several positions ex officio, these include;* A possible judge of the High Court....
, the Ceann Comhairle
Ceann Comhairle
The Ceann Comhairle is the chairman of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas of Ireland. The person who holds the position is elected by members of the Dáil from among their number in the first session after each general election...
of the Dáil and the Cathaoirleach
Cathaoirleach
Cathaoirleach is the title of the chairman of Seanad Éireann, the sixty-member upper house of the Oireachtas, the legislature of Ireland. The current Cathaoirleach is Senator Paddy Burke...
of the Seanad) from 12 September to 11 November 1997, when the new president Mary McAleese
Mary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...
was sworn in.
High Commissioner for Human Rights
Robinson became the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on 12 September 1997, resigning the Presidency a few weeks early with the approval of Irish political parties in order to take up the post. Media reports suggested that she had been head-hunted for the post by Secretary General of the United Nations Kofi AnnanKofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
to assume an advocacy as opposed to administrative role, in other words to become a public campaigner outlining principles rather than the previous implementational and consensus-building model. The belief was that the post had ceased to be seen as the voice of general principles and had become largely bureaucratic. Robinson's role was to set the human rights agenda within the organisation and internationally, refocusing its appeal.
In November 1997, still new to her post, Robinson delivered the Romanes Lecture
Romanes Lecture
The Romanes Lecture is a prestigious free public lecture given annually at the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, England.The lecture series was founded by, and named after, the biologist George Romanes, and has been running since 1892. Over the years, many notable figures from the Arts and Sciences have...
in Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
on the topic of "Realizing Human Rights"; she spoke of the "daunting challenge" ahead of her, and how she intended to set about her task. She concluded the lecture with words from The Golden Bough
The Golden Bough
The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging, comparative study of mythology and religion, written by Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer . It first was published in two volumes in 1890; the third edition, published 1906–15, comprised twelve volumes...
: "If fate has called you, the bough will come easily, and of its own accord. Otherwise, no matter how much strength you muster, you never will manage to quell it or cut it down with the toughest of blades."
Robinson was the first High Commissioner for Human Rights to visit Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
, making her trip in 1998. During her tenure she criticised the Irish system of permits for non-EU
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
immigrants as similar to "bonded labour" and criticised the United States' use of capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
. Though she had initially announced her intention to serve a single four-year period, she extended the term by a year following an appeal from Annan, allowing her to preside over the 2001 World Conference against Racism in Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
, South Africa, as Secretary-General. Robinson's posting as High Commissioner ended in 2002, after sustained pressure from the United States led her to declare she was no longer able to continue her work. Robinson had criticised the US for violating human rights in its war on terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
and the World Conference against Racism was widely condemned in the US for its perceived anti-semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
. Michael Rubin even went so far as to suggest that she be tried for war crimes for presiding over "an intellectual pogrom against Jews and Israel."
United States Congressman Tom Lantos faulted her for neglecting "to provide the leadership to keep the conference on track" and accused her of shouldering "much of the responsibility for the debacle."
On 9 November 2006 in Yogyakarta, she attended the international Conference, then she became one of 29 signators of the Yogyakarta Principles
Yogyakarta Principles
The Yogyakarta Principles on the Application of International Human Rights Law in relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity is a set of principles relating to sexual orientation and gender identity, intended to apply international human rights law standards to address the abuse of the...
, adopted for protection of LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
rights by International Human Rights Law
International human rights law
International human rights law refers to the body of international law designed to promote and protect human rights at the international, regional and domestic levels...
.
The Elders
On 18 July 2007 in Johannesburg, South Africa, Nelson Mandela, Graça MachelGraça Machel
Graça Machel, DBE is a Mozambican politician and humanitarian. She is the third wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela and the widow of Mozambican president Samora Machel...
, and Desmond Tutu
Desmond Tutu
Desmond Mpilo Tutu is a South African activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid...
convened a group of world leaders to contribute their wisdom, independent leadership and integrity to tackle some of the world's toughest problems. Nelson Mandela announced the formation of this new group, The Elders
Global Elders
The Elders is an international non-government organisation of public figures noted as elder statesmen, peace activists, and human rights advocates, brought together by Nelson Mandela in 2007...
, in a speech he delivered on the occasion of his 89th birthday.
Archbishop Tutu will serve as the Chair of The Elders. The founding members of this group also include Graça Machel
Graça Machel
Graça Machel, DBE is a Mozambican politician and humanitarian. She is the third wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela and the widow of Mozambican president Samora Machel...
, Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
, Ela Bhatt
Ela Bhatt
Ela Ramesh Bhatt is the founder of the Self-Employed Women's Association of India . A lawyer by training, Bhatt is a respected leader of the international labour, cooperative, women, and micro-finance movements who has won several national and international awards.-Early life:Ela Bhatt was born in...
, Gro Harlem Brundtland
Gro Harlem Brundtland
Gro Harlem Brundtland is a Norwegian Social democratic politician, diplomat, and physician, and an international leader in sustainable development and public health. She served three terms as Prime Minister of Norway , and has served as the Director General of the World Health Organization...
, Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
, Li Zhaoxing
Li Zhaoxing
Li Zhaoxing is a former foreign minister of the People's Republic of China. He held that office from 2003 to 2007.He graduated from Peking University in 1964...
and Muhammad Yunus
Muhammad Yunus
Muhammad Yunus is a Bangladeshi economist and founder of the Grameen Bank, an institution that provides microcredit to help its clients establish creditworthiness and financial self-sufficiency. In 2006 Yunus and Grameen received the Nobel Peace Prize...
.
"This group can speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken," Mandela commented. "Together we will work to support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict, and inspire hope where there is despair."
The Elders will be independently funded by a group of Founders, including Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate, best known for his Virgin Group of more than 400 companies....
, Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
, Ray Chambers; Michael Chambers; Bridgeway Foundation; Pam Omidyar, Humanity United; Amy Robbins; Shashi Ruia, Dick Tarlow; and the United Nations Foundation
United Nations Foundation
The United Nations Foundation started up in 1998 with a $1 billion grant from Ted Turner in order to support the United Nations in executing its programs worldwide. The creation of the Foundation was intended to encourage other donors to also support the UN in its activities...
.
She is a member of the Club of Madrid
Club of Madrid
The Club de Madrid is an independent non-profit organization created to promote democracy and change in the international community. Composed of 80 former Presidents and Prime Ministers from 56 countries, the Club de Madrid is the world’s largest forum of former Heads of State and Government.Among...
.
University of Dublin
Robinson is the twenty fourth, and first female, ChancellorChancellor (education)
A chancellor or vice-chancellor is the chief executive of a university. Other titles are sometimes used, such as president or rector....
of University of Dublin
University of Dublin
The University of Dublin , corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin , located in Dublin, Ireland, was effectively founded when in 1592 Queen Elizabeth I issued a charter for Trinity College, Dublin, as "the mother of a university" – this date making it...
(i.e. Trinity College). She represented the University in the Senate for over twenty years and held the Reid Chair in Law.
Post president period
In 1991, Mary Robinson was awarded honorary doctorates by Brown UniversityBrown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
and the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
.
In 1997 she was one of the two winners of the North-South Prize
North-South Prize
The North–South Prize is awarded annually by the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe to two public figures who are recognised for their deep commitment, outstanding achievements and hope they have generated in the field of protection of human rights, the defence of pluralist democracy and...
.
In 2002 she was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize
Sydney Peace Prize
The Sydney Peace Prize is awarded by the Sydney Peace Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation associated with the University of Sydney. The Sydney Peace Prize is the only International Peace Prize awarded in Australia....
for her outstanding work as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and in 2003 the prestigious Otto Hahn Peace Medal
Otto Hahn Peace Medal
The Otto Hahn Peace Medal in Gold is named after the German nuclear chemist and 1944 Nobel Laureate Otto Hahn, an honorary citizen of Berlin....
in Gold of the United Nations Association of Germany in Berlin.
In 2004, Mary Robinson was awarded an Honorary Degree by McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
.
In March 2005, Robinson gave a lecture entitled "Human Rights and Ethical Globalization"
at the University of San Diego
University of San Diego
The University of San Diego is a Roman Catholic university in San Diego, California. USD offers more than sixty bachelor's, master’s, and doctoral programs...
's Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Distinguished Lecture Series.
In May 2005 she was awarded the first "Outspoken" award from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC).
In October 2006 she was awarded the Social Science Principes de Asturias Prize. The jury commended her for
"offering her non-conformist, brave and far-reaching voice to those who cannot speak for themselves or can barely be heard." In the same month she was the keynote speaker at The Future of International Criminal Justice Symposium hosted by the Penn State Dickinson School of Law, where she spoke on "The Rule of Law and International Human Rights in Challenging Times".
In 2007, she joined the Arab Democracy Foundation
Arab Democracy Foundation
The Arab Democracy Foundation is an independent international Arab civil society organization advocating democracy as a culture, a way of life, and the best system for good governance. ADF was established on May 27, 2007 at the initiative of Arab democracy advocates, and with support from the...
as a founding member of its Board of Trustees.
In January 2009, Robinson was appointed as head of the International Commission of Jurists
International Commission of Jurists
The International Commission of Jurists is an international human rights non-governmental organization. The Commission itself is a standing group of 60 eminent jurists , including members of the senior judiciary in Australia, Canada, and South Africa and the former UN High Commissioner for Human...
.
In September 2009, she was awarded the 2009 Inamori Ethics Prize by Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
where she gave a lecture entitled "New Challenges to Human Rights in the 21st Century" at Severance Hall in Cleveland, OH. In the same month, she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Bath
University of Bath
The University of Bath is a campus university located in Bath, United Kingdom. It received its Royal Charter in 1966....
at the 1100th anniversary celebration of the Diocese of Bath and Wells, where she gave a lecture entitled "Realising rights: the role of religion in human rights in the future".
On 29 September 2010, at a ceremony in Dublin, Mary Robinson received a knighthood from the Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem. As a former Head of State and in recognition of her significant contribution towards human rights she was awarded the honour of Dame Grand Cross of Merit.
World Justice Project
Mary Robinson serves as an Honorary Co-Chair for the World Justice ProjectWorld Justice Project
-Mainstreaming:The World Justice Project holds action-oriented meetings with leaders from a range of fields to mainstream rule of law advancement and make strengthening the rule of law as fundamental to the thinking and work of all professionals as it is to lawyers...
. The World Justice Project
World Justice Project
-Mainstreaming:The World Justice Project holds action-oriented meetings with leaders from a range of fields to mainstream rule of law advancement and make strengthening the rule of law as fundamental to the thinking and work of all professionals as it is to lawyers...
works to lead a global, multidisciplinary effort to strengthen the Rule of Law
Rule of law
The rule of law, sometimes called supremacy of law, is a legal maxim that says that governmental decisions should be made by applying known principles or laws with minimal discretion in their application...
for the development of communities of opportunity and equity.
AWEPAAWEPAThe Association of European Parliamentarians for Africa is an international non-governmental organisation founded by European Parliamentarians to reduce poverty and to protect human rights by supporting the well functioning of parliaments in Africa and by keeping Africa on the political agenda in...
Robinson currently serves on the Eminent Advisory Board of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa (AWEPAAWEPA
The Association of European Parliamentarians for Africa is an international non-governmental organisation founded by European Parliamentarians to reduce poverty and to protect human rights by supporting the well functioning of parliaments in Africa and by keeping Africa on the political agenda in...
), which has been used as a platform to promote her messages on issues such as the Famine in the Horn of Africa.
Presidential Medal of Freedom
In July 2009, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of FreedomPresidential Medal of Freedom
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with thecomparable Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award in the United States...
, the highest civilian honour awarded by the United States. In presenting the award to Robinson, U.S. President Barack Obama said "Mary Robinson learned early on what it takes to make sure all voices are heard. As a crusader for women and those without a voice in Ireland, Mary Robinson was the first woman elected President of Ireland, before being appointed U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. When she traveled abroad as President, she would place a light in her window that would draw people of Irish descent to pass by below. Today, as an advocate for the hungry and the hunted, the forgotten and the ignored, Mary Robinson has not only shone a light on human suffering, but illuminated a better future for our world."
Amnesty International congratulated Mary Robinson on being named as a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. "Mary Robinson has long defended the rights of the underdog and has never shirked from speaking truth to power,” said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International. "As an outspoken, passionate and forceful advocate for human rights and human dignity in all regions of the world, Mary Robinson has helped countless individuals from Sierra Leone to Rwanda to the Balkans to Somalia and to the Middle East," she continued. Nelson Mandela and Graca Machel also congratulated Robinson on her acceptance of the award.
The award was criticised by some American and European Jewish groups, while other groups offered support for the award. Parties opposed to the award included AIPAC
American Israel Public Affairs Committee
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee is a lobbying group that advocates pro-Israel policies to the Congress and Executive Branch of the United States...
, the Anti-Defamation League
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
, the European Jewish Congress, and John R. Bolton
John R. Bolton
John Robert Bolton is an American lawyer and diplomat who has served in several Republican presidential administrations. He served as the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations from August 2005 until December 2006 on a recess appointment...
. John R. Bolton, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations, stated that those in the administration who recommended her either ignored her anti-Israel history, or missed it entirely. On the other hand, a group of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
organizations including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Bimkom, B'Tselem, Gisha, Hamoked, Physicians for Human Rights and Yesh Din, stated "as leaders of a sector within Israeli civil society that monitors and often criticizes government and military policy for violating human rights, we do not see such actions as plausible reason for denying Mrs. Robinson the award." In response to the protests by some Jewish groups and commentators, Robinson said she was “surprised and dismayed” and that "this is old, recycled, untrue stuff,” “I have been very critical of the Palestinian side. My conduct continues to be on the side of tackling anti-Semitism and discrimination,” Robinson said. "There's a lot of bullying by certain elements of the Jewish community. They bully people who try to address the severe situation in Gaza and the West Bank. Archbishop Desmond Tutu gets the same criticism," Robinson also said. In an open letter to Robinson, Hillel Neuer
Hillel Neuer
Hillel C. Neuer is executive director of UN Watch, a human rights NGO in Geneva, Switzerland.Originally from Montreal, Neuer has written on law, politics and international affairs for publications such as the International Herald Tribune, Juriste International, Commentary, The New Republic Online...
, executive director of UN Watch
UN Watch
UN Watch is a Geneva-based NGO whose stated mission is "to monitor the performance of the United Nations by the yardstick of its own Charter". It is an accredited NGO in Special Consultative Status to the UN Economic and Social Council and an Associate NGO to the UN Department of Public Information...
, rejected Robinson's claim at being misunderstood or bullied by those who criticize her role in Durban. He said that she failed to confront purveyors of anti-Israel rhetoric. "You may not have been the chief culprit of the Durban debacle, but you will always be its preeminent symbol", he added. When asked about the opposition to the award by AIPAC and other Jewish groups, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs replied "Mary Robinson was the first female President of Ireland, and she is somebody whom we are honoring as a prominent crusader of women's rights in Ireland and throughout the world."
United States Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, United States Senate Assistant Majoriy Leader Dick Durbin, and some other legislators welcomed the presenting of the award to Robinson." Forty-five Republican Congressmen sent a letter to President Obama raised issue with the presentation citing "her failed, biased record as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights".
In a letter to President Obama, Nancy Rubin, a former American ambassador to the UN Human Rights Commission, welcomed the award and praised Robinson as a "dedicated crusader for human rights for all people". Oxfam
Oxfam
Oxfam is an international confederation of 15 organizations working in 98 countries worldwide to find lasting solutions to poverty and related injustice around the world. In all Oxfam’s actions, the ultimate goal is to enable people to exercise their rights and manage their own lives...
confederation also expressed its strong support for Robinson. The Council of Women World Leaders, the Champalimaud Foundation, and the ImagineNations Group
ImagineNations Group
ImagineNations Group is a global alliance of social entrepreneurs, thought leaders, investors, financial institutions, global brands, media and organizations — all working together to empower and inspire a new generation of successful young adults in the developing world with opportunities,...
welcomed the presentation of the Medal of Freedom to Robinson.
The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission congratulated Robinson, saying she "helped advance recognition of the human rights of LGBT people in her capacity as President of Ireland and as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. She has been unwavering in her passionate call to end torture, persecution, and discrimination against LGBT people globally."
Further reading
- Stephen Collins, Spring and the Labour Party (O'Brien Press, 1993) ISBN 0-86278-349-6
- Eamon Delaney, An Accidental Diplomat: My Years in the Irish Foreign Service (1987–1995) (New Island Books, 2001) ISBN 1-902602-39-0
- Garret FitzGerald, All in a Life (Gill and Macmillan, 1991) ISBN 0-7171-1600-X
- Fergus Finlay, Mary Robinson: A President with a Purpose (O'Brien Press, 1991) ISBN 0-86278-257-0
- Fergus Finlay. Snakes & Ladders (New Island Books, 1998) ISBN 1-874597-76-6
- Jack Jones, In Your Opinion: Political and Social Trends in Ireland through the Eyes of the Electorate (Townhouse, 2001) ISBN 1-86059-149-3
- Ray Kavanagh, The Rise and Fall of the Labour Party:1986-1999 (Blackwater Press 2001) ISBN 1-84131-528-1
- Gabriel Kiely, Anne o'Donnell, Patricia Kennedy, Suzanne Quin (eds) Irish Social Policy in Context (University College Dublin Press, 1999) ISBN 1-900621-25-8
- Brian Lenihan, For the Record (Blackwater Press, 1991) ISBN 0-86121-362-9
- Mary McQuillan, Mary Robinson: A President in Progress (Gill and Macmillan, 1994) ISBN 0-7171-2251-4
- Olivia O'Leary & Helen Burke, Mary Robinson: The Authorised Biography (Lir/Hodder & Stoughton, 1998) ISBN 0-340-71738-6
- Michael O'Sullivan, Mary Robinson: The Life and Times of an Irish Liberal (Blackwater Press, 1993) ISBN 0-86121-448-X
- Lorna Siggins, The Woman Who Took Power in the Park: Mary Robinson, President of Ireland, 1990-1997 (Mainstream Publishing, 1997) ISBN 1-85158-805-1
External links
- Realizing Rights was founded in October 2002 by Mary Robinson
- Mary Robinson Calls for Global Climate Justice Fund - video report by Democracy Now!Democracy Now!Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...