Meeting of the Parliament 23 February 2016
As Professor Miller prepares to step down from the SHRC at the end of March, I wish him every success in his future endeavours.
Even in its fledgling first year, SNAP attracted considerable international interest. As we heard in the Justice Committee,
“It is now recognised internationally that SNAP has set the bar for how a plan should be put together and how its potential should be realised.”
Given that human rights institutions are established in more than 100 countries, that is quite an achievement.
During the evidence session, I was also interested to learn about how the SHRC balances its international interests with its focus on domestic work. Professor Miller explained that that is a “two-way street”, with the SHRC acting as
“a bridge between”
Scotland
“and the international human rights system.”
Professor Miller went on to say that one example in that regard is the area of survivors of historical child abuse, and he told the committee that the approach that we have adopted to help to bring about much-needed closure for victims
“is of considerable interest to many other countries around the world.”—[Official Report, Justice Committee, 26 January 2016; c 37-8.]
I am pleased that others can begin to build on what we have achieved so far in Scotland, in what is an incredibly complex and sensitive area.
It is important to understand that in year 2, as a result of research that was undertaken in an effort to get SNAP right, it was recognised that people in Scotland do not know a lot about their economic, social and cultural rights. Furthermore it was revealed that people who, by virtue of their occupation, have a duty to protect human rights often worry about how that can be done.
There is therefore a need to bridge the gap in people’s understanding of human rights. That has led to a big focus on generating and sharing accessible information about human rights, for the wider public and for people who work for organisations that have human rights duties.
I welcome the Scottish Government’s achievement in co-ordinating and funding a public awareness campaign about human rights. The campaign took place in the run-up to 10 December, which was international human rights day. However, I echo the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s call for the Scottish Government to provide further indication of how the First Minister’s commitment to better incorporate human rights into devolved policy areas will be achieved.
I look forward to following the work of the SHRC and SNAP as the plan enters its third year, and I wish Judith Robertson well in her new post.
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