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Ireland's political and cultural magazine
4 6 April 2016
1916
T
he recent multitude of events commemorat-
ing the centenary of the 1916 rising has
provided ample opportunity to reconsider and
admire the original wording of the 1916 Proc-
lamation of the Irish Republic.
“The Republic guarantees religious and civil liberty,
equal rights and equal opportunities to all its citizens,
and declares its resolve to pursue the happiness and
prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts, cher-
ishing all the children of the nation equally…”.
Despite the power of such rhetoric, this vision for the
Irish Republic has never been achieved. Opportunities
to implement it have been squandered and political
promises of radical reform have not been delivered. The
muddled and uninspiring outcome of the 2016 general
election lends supports to the view that our politics and
our political choices
are driven by short-
term considerations
and that we lack an
overarching vision of
the type of society we
should be working to
create.
The abhorrent living
conditions of the tene-
ments of 1916
underpinned a serious
housing crisis at that
time. While thankfully, 100 years on, such living condi-
tions are no longer accepted, escalating rents and the
level of homelessness today means we have a housing
crisis in 2016. We remain a relatively unequal society in
which many groups face discrimination and exclusion.
Our economy, betrayed in recent times by an unsavoury
coalition of politicians, bankers, developers and regu-
lators, serves neither our society nor our
environment.
The vision of the 1916 Proclamation remains valid. It
inspired Claiming Our Future to examine how civil soci-
ety could respond to the celebration of the 1916
anniversary. Rather than focusing on failings in the
implementation of the Proclamation’s vision, Claiming
Our Future developed a new blueprint for a vision. Our
Declaration for a Future Ireland sought to look forward
rather than backward.
We posted an invitation to participate on a dedicated
website and met organisations around the country. This
allowed for drafting and submitting of personal ver-
sions of the Declaration. We offered to facilitate groups
and individuals adumbrating their hopes for the future
as “Future News” in a two-minute newsshow format.
The groups that took part ranged from Young Friends
of the Earth to the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland and
the Longford Women’s Group.
The final Declaration for a Future Ireland embraces a
fundamental transformation of our current society to
become a flourishing Ireland based on the core progres-
sive values of equality, environmental sustainability,
participation, accountability and solidarity. It pro-
poses 21 wide ranging Guarantees. These have been
grouped to resonate with the key demands that
emerged from the pro-
cess: Equality, Rights
and Justice; A Participa-
tory, Accountable and
Inclusive Democracy;
An Environmentally
Sustainable and Vibrant
Economy; and A High
Quality of Life based on
Solidarity.
Like the Proclama-
tion, the Declaration for
a Future Ireland aspires
to be a visionary document. On closer inspection, the
guarantees it pledges are not that radical. Each one is
underpinned by a value that will echo with most peo-
ple’s own fundamental beliefs. It is this values-based
society that we ask people to critically reflect upon and
declare for themselves.
Claiming Our Future is now embarking on a process
to engage with civil society organisations on how best
to implement this Declaration. How could this values-
based framework be used in their own advocacy work
in seeking social change? We want to engage with any
new Government on taking up the ideas in the Declara-
tion. What values underpin their future policy proposals
and how could they espouse the guarantees made?
Claiming Our Future asks that you join with us to now,
raise our heads, reclaim our voices, our rights and our
dignity and pledge support to this, our Future Ireland.
Now
not Then
What a 2016 Proclamation would look like
by Mary Kinane
April 2016 4 7
Equality, Rights and Justice
Guarantees:
•
Fulfilment of fundamental and inalienable social,
economic, cultural, civil, political and environmen-
tal rights.
• Equality between women and men.
•
Protection from sexual violence and exploitation
and caring support to allow for control of fertility
and family planning.
•
Equality for all people and diverse groups in our
society respectful of diversity of age, disability,
gender, religion, ethnic identity including member-
ship of the Traveller community, sexual orientation,
marital status, family status, or socio-economic
status.
•
Protection from institutional abuses, isolation, seg-
regation, discrimination and violence together with
equal treatment before the law.
• Equitable distribution of income so as to ensure a
guaranteed adequate minimum income for all,
whether in paid employment or not, which is suffi-
cient to live life in comfort and with dignity,
achieving a socially acceptable ratio between maxi-
mum and minimum incomes.
Participatory, Accountability and
Inclusive Democracy Guarantees:
• Pluralist, participatory, diverse, gender-balanced
and accountable democracy, with strong local gov-
ernment and inclusive systems of decision-making,
which listens to all voices and reflects collective
opinion, celebrating diversity of opinion and
dissent.
• Public participation in policy-making, including for
those experiencing poverty, inequality, and social
exclusion; and a constructive say in decisions.
• Vibrant civil society with effective community and
environmental organizations, trade unions, com-
munity-culture groups and cooperative enterprises
which, through collective effort, build strong com-
munities which are flourishing places of caring,
sharing and well-being.
•
Safe and legal avenues to enter Ireland for those
from outside Europe who are in need of our protec-
tion and an assurance of welcome, integration and
empowerment for migrants and refugees.
• Opportunities to express creativity and participate
in and celebrate our social and cultural heritage as
well as the traditions of other cultures in our
society.
Sustainable Environment and
Vibrant Economy Guarantees:
•
Environment that is protected, renewed, and made
available for future generations; is freed from the
use of fossil fuel; promotes recycling; and values
and protects its biodiversity.
• Vibrant economy that serves the needs of society,
provides sustainable jobs and respects environ-
mental limits: an economy that promotes the
development of cooperative enterprises and that
organises the production, distribution and con-
sumption of goods and resources in an egalitarian
and environmentally sustainable way.
•
Banking and financial system that is strongly regu-
lated and prohibits excessive speculation and
rewards.
•
Progressive, just and equitable taxation system that
balances taxes on labour, wealth, corporate profits,
financial transactions and resources, that fosters
equality and that enables long-term sustained
investment in our public infrastructure and
services.
•
Decent, properly rewarded, accessible and non-
exploitative work, job security, workers’ rights,
equal pay for men and women and a good work-life
balance.
High Quality of Life based on
Solidarity Guarantees:
•
Effective, efficient, transparent and adequately
funded public services available to all irrespective
of income and, in particular, effective, efficient and
universally accessible public health services, social
services, education, early childhood care and edu-
cation, and transport services.
•
Secular education system that empowers young
people to develop as active citizens, giving them
practical experience of civic life, informing them of
the rights they enjoy and should respect, and sup-
porting them to participate in shaping their future.
•
Affordable, high quality, warm and energy-efficient
homes, both public and private, available to all as
a right.
•
Well-being of all children who will be cherished and
loved equally and will have access to shelter, food,
education and other services necessary for their
happiness and development; no child will grow up
in an institutional environment and no child will be
subjected to sexual exploitation.
• Recognition of and support for the contribution of
care-work and voluntary activity to society.
