Alison Mawhinney

Dr. Alison Mawhinney is a Northern Irish-based academic, researcher and published author. She began lecturing at the School of Law at Queen's University Belfast (QUB) in September of 2006. She belongs to the School's Human Rights Centre.

In June 2007, the Centre was visited by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion, Ms. Asma Jahangir, who was on an official mission to the United Kingdom. Dr. Mawhinney discussed some of the key issues in relation to freedom of religion in Northern Ireland with the Special Rapporteur, as well as Prof. Colin Harvey and Professor Brice Dickson.

Biography
Alison Mawhinney completed her undergraduate studies at Trinity College Dublin where she graduated with a B.A. (Hons) in Political Science in 1988. She completed a LL.M. in International Human Rights Law at the University of Essex in 1996, and a Ph.D at Queen's University Belfast in 2005.

Before earning her doctorate at QUB she worked for a variety of organisations in the field of human rights including the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the United Nations WFP. She is currently involved in research in the areas of freedom of religion in schools, religious discrimination in employment and the human rights obligations of non-state service providers.

Writings
Dr. Mawhinney published an article, Freedom of Religion in the Irish Primary School System: A Failure to Protect Human Rights? in Legal Studies. She also delivered papers at the Law, Religion, Culture Interdisciplinary Symposium (held at the University of Lancaster) in September 2007, as well as at a conference on Rights and Righteousness: Religious Pluralism and Human Rights (held in Belfast) in November 2007. She has strongly-held views and has written passionately on the issue of childrens' education in Ireland, particularly in the Republic of Ireland. Her submission concerned the protection of Article 18 rights in the primary education system in Ireland. In particular, it responds to Ireland's description of this protection in paragraphs 409-411 of its third periodic report (CCPR/C/IRL/3).

: Two characteristics define and structure the primary education system in the Republic of Ireland. First, there are no state-run primary schools. All primary schools are run by private bodies to which the state contributes financial support. Secondly, 98 per cent of these private organisations are religious. This means that the vast majority of primary schools in the state, though publicly funded, are privately run denominational schools. Out of more than 3,170 primary schools in the country, only 44 are privately initiated multi-denominational schools.

:For much of the existence of the education system and of the state, neither the absence of non-religious schools nor the religiously segregated nature of the education system was problematic. However, as the 2006 census data show, the Irish population is not only increasing but is becoming more complex. There is more religious diversity with people of no religion now constituting the second largest group in the state. One interesting estimate suggests that by 2012 one-third of all marriages will involve civil ceremonies. Furthermore, Ireland's booming economy has attracted ... immigrants. In 2006 foreign-born residents made up 14% of the population; many of these are adding further to the religious mix in society. It is this changing society that is presenting challenges to Ireland's unique system of primary education

:The problems manifest themselves in two distinct ways. First, in areas of high population growth there is a shortage of schools. Catholic schools in these areas operate admissions policies based on the religion of the families and this has resulted in non-Catholic children being turned away and left without any school place. It has also led some parents to get their children baptised specifically to ensure they can gain entry to a school, any school. The second problem ... is a lack of choice ... parents who may not wish to have their children educated in a religious environment or who may want a more multi-denominational approach to their children's education have no choice but to send their child to the local Catholic or Protestant school. Doctrinal religion is taught in these schools through timetabled religious education classes and through what's known as the integrated curriculum where - by law - religious teaching must be incorporated into secular subjects and throughout the daily life of the school. In Catholic schools doctrinal religious education is also taught through preparation for the sacraments ... during school time ... he issue is the protection of the religious liberty of families who do not belong to the religions that run the primary schools but whose children are forced to attend these schools. (Dr. A. Mawhinney, March 2008)

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu