Memorandum submitted by the Catholic Church
of Ireland
INTRODUCTION
The increase in racist and homophobic incidents,
along with attacks on the elderly and disabled, has been met with
a growing sense of concern and deep moral revulsion by the overwhelming
majority of people in Northern Ireland. It is an issue which requires
urgent and comprehensive action from all of those who can influence
public attitudes in any way. All such attacks, and the attitudes
of superiority, exclusion, intolerance and aggression which lie
behind them, are an insidious evil which must be constantly and
vigorously challenged within all of us and within society at large.
The Criminal Justice (No.2) (Northern Ireland)
Order 2004, due to come into operation on 26 September this
year, is a vital and welcome part of the political and legislative
response to this evil. Strong legislation sends a clear signal
that such behaviour can not and will not be tolerated, since it
offends the fundamental dignity of every human person and undermines
the very freedom, tolerance and respect which lie at the heart
of a stable and democratic society. The availability to the courts
of increased penalties for offences motivated by hostility towards
a person's race, religion, sexual orientation or disability will
hopefully provide an important additional deterrent to people
who would be tempted to engage in such acts.
BEYOND LEGISLATION
Yet strong and effective legislation of itself
will not be enough to address the underlying attitudes which give
rise to such behaviour. We must, collectively and comprehensively,
seek to address the roots of hatred itself, in all its forms.
This will involve a wide range of strategies, structures and initiatives
which together should form a comprehensive social and political
response to the underlying sources of such attitudes and behaviour.
This in turn will require engagement with the widest possible
range of civic, religious and political organisations that can
help to influence these attitudes in our society, including the
Churches. For that reason I welcome this opportunity to participate,
with others, in exploring ways in which we can all respond to
the current situation.
While a more thorough analysis is required,
and should be sought through comprehensive academic research into
this issue, it is possible to identify at least some of the factors
which contribute to the presence of a higher rate of racist incidents
and other "hate" crimes in Northern Ireland than in
England and Wales.
This includes the fact that the last ten years
have seen a period of almost unprecedented social and demographic
change in Northern Ireland. At the social level, some people have
experienced a general increase in confidence, inclusion and participation.
Regrettably, but by no means inevitably, this has been met with
a corresponding decrease in the sense of confidence, inclusion
and participation on the part of others. Added into this mix have
been the significant demographic changes that have occurred in
terms of the relative size of the two largest communities. This
has produced changes in the pattern of housing provision throughout
Northern Ireland and has given rise to well publicised tensions
between the two largest communities, most notably, but not exclusively,
at so-called interface areas.
The cumulative impact of these changes has been
to leave many, particularly in areas of social and economic disadvantage,
feeling that their identity and security of space and belonging,
is under threat. This in turn can reduce a community's capacity
to react constructively to the consequences of increased racial,
ethnic and religious diversity.
The relative confidence of certain sectors can
lead to an unjustified sense of complacency about their responsibility
and propensity to so-called "hate" crimes, when, in
fact, racial, homophobic and ethnic attacks are on the increase
in these areas as well.
All of this highlights the need to consider
the impact of overall political and social change on more localised,
even individual, attitudes and behaviour, when analysing the dynamics
of hate. The failure to secure stable political arrangements,
based on equality, power-sharing and mutual respect, will inevitably
impact on the dynamics of fear and threat which exist in society
at large, especially if people feel disempowered or become disillusioned
with politics and social change generally. The character and tone
of political and civic leadership are critically important in
this regard. There is a huge responsibility on civic and political
leaders to model the principle of constructive co-operation for
the common good, while at the same time demonstrating respect
for the right of everyone to a particular religious, ethnic, political
or cultural identity and conviction. There have been examples
of leaders being able to work collectively together without dilution
of convictions, principles and identity. We must, at all levels
of civic, religious and political life, witness to the possibility
of confident and diverse identities working in effective collaboration
for the common good.
BUILDING CONFIDENT
IDENTITIES
To do this effectively, however, requires that
people feel secure in and confident about the future of their
own identity and confident in turn, that their identity will be
treated with fairness and respect by others.
This suggests that part of the response to the
general issue of "hate" crime is to develop and support
strategies which enable individuals and communities to build confidence
in their own identity and culture. Such strategies should enable
them to respond to inevitable and necessary changes in society,
and to participate constructively in the mechanisms for influencing
that change at a local and regional level. This means supporting
what are sometimes known as "single identity" capacity
building strategies. These seek to develop and empower local communities
to greater confidence in their own identity. Building this confidence
will help to diminish the sense of threat felt by people when
they encounter increasing diversity and demographic change.
What is also required is that strategies be
developed and supported which seek to build understanding between
diverse identities. A lot of excellent initiatives have already
been undertaken in this regard, many of them sponsored by the
Churches. Youth Link, for example, one of the largest providers
of Youth Services in Northern Ireland, was established by the
Catholic, Church of Ireland, Methodist and Presbyterian Churches
in 1991. It supports the Churches in working together to develop
excellence in youth work and provides opportunities for young
people of different traditions and cultural backgrounds to develop
mutual understanding, tolerance, acceptance and respect and to
be active contributors towards reconciliation and building a better
society.
In 1978, the Irish Council of Churches and the
Catholic Bishops' Conference established the Churches' Peace Education
Programme. The aim of the programme was to provide support to
primary and secondary schools throughout Northern Ireland in the
areas of mutual understanding, respect for diversity, learning
conflict resolution through games and play and the development
of emotional literacy and peace-building skills. Over the 26 years
of its existence the project has produced a comprehensive and
pioneering range of school-based materials covering every year
group and each key stage in the Northern Ireland system. At present
these materials are being used in 500 out of the 800 primary schools
in Northern Ireland and in over 50% of Secondary schools. Until
April of this year, the project had two full-time employees working
directly with schools and developing materials, supported by administrative
staff and a number of part-time and voluntary staff. Until recently,
the project was also at the forefront of developing and maintaining
pioneering/cross-community! cross-border joint school projects
on cultural heritage and mutual understanding with primary and
secondary schools in the border counties. The project also maintains
a comprehensive resource centre for schools at 48 Elmwood Avenue,
Belfast. The materials here cover the whole range of skills and
information necessary to address the issue of "hate crime",
in all the forms identified in the recent legislation, within
the school curriculum.
Sadly, however, after 26 years of pioneering
work, and in spite of being the only such project to have the
backing of the main Churches and subsequent access to both the
Maintained and Controlled sectors, the Department of Education
decided to cease funding for the Churches' Peace Education Project
in April of this year. This meant that staffing was reduced, with
immediate effect, to one person on a part-time basis, paid for
solely by the Churches and some other voluntary and charitable
sources. This decision by the Department of Education has also
brought about the end of the highly acclaimed cross-community!
cross-border schools initiative.
In the light of the increase in "hate crime",
which has precipitated our meeting here today, and the need to
address the underlying sources of such crimes through schools
in particular, it is difficult to understand how such a decision
can be justified. I take this opportunity to ask those politicians
present to raise this matter with the relevant Minister and with
the Department with a view to seeking a reversal of that decision.
Schools have a vital role to play in addressing
the .attitudes which underpin intolerance and hatred in our society.
Thankfully, all of the various sectors within the education system
in Northern Ireland, seek to address this issue as a key priority
of the particular character and ethos of their type of school.
The official religious education programme, developed by the Catholic
Bishops of Ireland includes, material, information and activities
which seek to address the issue of tolerance and respect for diversity.
It seeks to raise awareness of other religions groups; It deals
with the experience of immigrants and the Christian duty to love
and support the stranger in our midst; and tries to development
constructive skills of conflict resolution. We have recently reviewed
this programme with the objective of addressing the increase in
racial and other "hate" based incidents.
The Catholic Church has also given its active
support to the inclusion of these themes, most notably the obligation
to study and understand other world religions, in the recent revision
of the Core Syllabus in Religious Education.
PRACTICAL INITIATIVES
A number of Catholic schools in areas where
racial incidents have been occurring, have taken the lead, with
their local Parish, in arranging "welcome" and "awareness"
days for local people. There they can meet they can meet talk
to people from a variety of ethnic and religious backgrounds who
are living in the area. This has included days where people from
a variety of ethnic and religious backgrounds set up stalls in
School or Parish Halls which display food, artifacts and symbols
which reflect their culture, practices and beliefs. I believe
initiatives such as these deserve to be encouraged on a wider
basis.
Many local parishes and protestant congregations
have also been at the forefront of facilitating engagement, discussion
and encounter between various religious, ethnic and other groups
at local community level. These discussions deserve to be encouraged
and further developed.
The Partners in Transformation and Moving
Beyond Sectarianism projects, deserve particular mention in
this regard. Organised by the Irish School of Ecumenics these
initiatives seek to help Churches, at both a local and at a leadership
level, to reflect critically on their own disposition towards
attitudes of superiority and exclusion, and at the same time to
"enhance, nurture, and support the capacity of churches and
faith communities in their calling to be peace-builders and agents
of transformation". This pioneering work provides a model
of good practice which could be extended to include reflection
on other sources of "hate" in our society and deserves
to be extended to include engagement with other sources of social
capital and influence such as political parties, civic institutions
as well as civic and political leadership.
One of the important lessons which have been
learnt from these initiatives is the role of public language in
generating a culture of superiority and exclusion, a critical
source of attitudes of hate. For Churches this presents the particular
challenge of ensuring that the language of legitimate theological
debate and difference is not translated into attitudes of exclusion
and superiority. As Christian leaders we must ensure that the
overwhelmingly inclusive, tolerant and constructive language of
Christian faith is translated into a similarly inclusive, tolerant
and constructive society in which respect for the inherent dignity
of every human person is the preeminent culture and ideal.
This attention to the importance of language
also has consequences for many other leaders in society. For that
reason I suggest that support should be given to initiatives which
seek to train civic, religious and political leaders in this and
related areas.
Other initiatives which deserve consideration
include:
— Inclusion in the legislation of increased
penalties for those who have attacked, threatened or intimidated
the elderly, the young or the disabled. The additional vulnerability
of these people suggests that they deserve additional protection
through the law.
— The creation of a centralised resource
agency which could provide a gateway into a comprehensive range
of agencies and resources for those who have been subject to any
form of hate-based crime, threat or discrimination. Often those
who have been subject to such incidents are uncertain as to where
to go to get support which will be coherent and comprehensive
enough to respond to their situation.
— While it would require a much fuller
discussion, the Churches may be uniquely placed to co-operate
in a co-ordinated campaign against hate crime, in all its forms.
The structure of Parish, Congregation and School could be utilised
to disseminate an agreed logo which people could place in their
front windows at home as a sign of welcome to anyone who may be
feeling threatened or at risk. Young people especially could be
encouraged to wear lapel badges indicating their willingness to
help anyone in need of support against threat or attack. Such
an initiative could be further developed along the lines of the
"Neighbourhood Watch" type schemes already in operation
in some areas.
— The development of a public campaign
against "hate crime" based on similar campaigns which
sought to change public attitudes to smoking, speeding and drink
driving.
— The allocation of additional resources
by the PSNI in order to address this particular issue through
increased monitoring and recording of such incidents across all
of the "hate crime" categories mentioned in the legislation.
— Further attention needs to be given
to addressing the phenomenon of "marking out territory"
in Northern Ireland. This includes providing additional legislation
and resources which would allow for stronger police action in
relation to paramilitary flags and other inappropriate symbols
displayed on public property.
— The creation of a voluntary code
of public conduct and debate for politicians, church personnel
and other community leaders.
— The establishment of local civic
fora which have, as part of their statutory constitution, representatives
from each of the categories identified in the "hate crime"
legislation and which discuss, as a matter of routine, issues
relating to the legislation.
— The development of locally negotiated,
publicly displayed and widely disseminated Community Charters
outlining agreed principles for relating to individuals, groups
and communities and for the sharing of space and resources.
CONCLUSION: ADDITIONAL
CONSIDERATIONS
In light of the recommendations of The Justice
(Northern Ireland) Act 2002 to explore the increased use of
"diversionary options" and restorative justice concepts
in the Criminal Justice system here, it seems reasonable to suggest
that such options should be explicitly developed in the context
of the proposed legislation on hate crime. Perhaps more than most
other types of crime, recidivism in relation to hate crime may
be reduced by exposure to programmes which encourage the perpetrator
to address the underlying attitudes, presuppositions and misunderstandings
which gave rise to this dimension to their actions in the first
place. The aim of any punitive action in this area must be to
address the attitudes underlying the behaviour as well as the
behaviour itself. In this regard, it may be helpful to increase
the range of remedial options available to the court, including
the possibility of community service in which the perpetrator
is obliged to spend time working for or with the group they have
victimised.
Finally, as a religious leader I would like
to point out that the increase in racist and other "hate"
based incidents occurs in the context of a growing atmosphere
of aggression and violence more generally in our society. While
a complex social phenomenon, this too deserves the attention of
those responsible for social policy and social cohesion. Among
other things I would suggest that it requires an effort to restore
the general sense of responsibility for the common good in society,
to move away from an exclusively rights based approach to social
participation to one which places a similar emphasis on courtesy,
respect and mutual responsibility for the common good.
14 September 2004
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