This week the UN Human Rights Committee again told Ireland to provide secular education by establishing non-denominational schools, to bar all forms of discrimination against teachers and medical workers, and to remove the religious oaths in the constitution for people who take up senior public office positions.Atheist Ireland has repeatedly raised these issues with the UN, including before and during this session. They are fundamental breaches of human rights. The Irish state has repeatedly told the UN that it will address them, but the government never carries through on these commitments.

This week, Atheist Ireland chairperson Michael Nugent did a lengthy podcast interview with Conor Faughnan of Senior Times. Michael discussed his childhood as well as his adult life promoting democracy, secularism, and atheism, and how much Ireland has changed over recent decades.

We have published more documents from our correspondence about the constitutional right to not attend religious instruction in schools, with the Department of Education, the NCCA, the Oireachtas Education and Public Accounts Committees, and the Comptroller and Auditor General.

We are publishing these gradually so that you can follow how the arguments have evolved. Please let us know if you would like to to help us with this lobbying campaign after the Oireachtas summer break.

You can also help us to continue all of our work by joining Atheist Ireland as a member, or by asking anybody who you think may be interested in joining us to do so. We are an entirely voluntary body with no paid staff, and we depend on our members to continue our work. You can join Atheist Ireland here.

Atheist Ireland welcomes today’s concluding observations of the UN Human Rights Committee, which again tell Ireland to provide secular education by establishing non-denominational schools, and to further amend the Employment Equality Act to bar all forms of discrimination against teachers and medical workers.
The UN Committee has also told Ireland to remove the religious oaths in the constitution for people who take up senior public office positions, taking into account the right not to be compelled to reveal one’s thoughts or adherence to a religion or belief in public.
Atheist Ireland raised these three issues with the UN Committee, both in our submissions to the recent session and during the session, in which the UN questioned Ireland about its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
We have repeatedly raised these issues with the UN, and the Irish state has repeatedly told the UN that it will address them, but the government never carries through on these commitments.
Indeed, Ireland misled the UN Committee this year by saying the government’s objective is to have 400 ‘multi-denominational or non-denominational schools’. But this is not true. The programme for government refers only to ‘multi-denominational’ schools.
What the UN has repeatedly asked for is secular or non-denominational schools, which they explicitly refer to in this week’s concluding observations.
Atheist Ireland continues to promote these three fundamental human rights: the right to secular education through nondenominational schools, the right to teach and work in hospitals without religious discrimination, and the right to be President, a judge, Taoiseach, or Tanaiste, without swearing a religious oath that a conscientious atheist could not take.
Here are the relevant extracts from the UN’s concluding observations:

Freedom of religion
41. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the Education (Admissions to Schools) Act 2018 to prohibit the use of religion as a selection criterion in primary school admissions, and the measures taken towards the establishment of multi-denominational schools. However, recalling its previous concerns, the Committee regrets the lack of information regarding the access to secular education through the establishment of non-denominational schools.
The Committee is concerned the provisions of the Act relating to the prohibition of religions as a selection criteria only applies to primary education and about reports that over half of secondary schools are under religious patronage and operate with a religious ethos.
It is also concerned at the slow progress in amending the provisions of the Constitution that oblige individuals wishing to take up senior public office positions to take religious oaths.
Furthermore, the Committee reiterates its previous concern that under section 37(1) of the Employment Equality Acts, religious-owned institutions, including in the fields of education and health, can discriminate against employees or prospective employees to protect the religious ethos of the institution (arts. 2, 18 and 26).
42. The Committee reiterates its previous recommendations that the State party should:
(a) Consider taking concrete steps to amending articles 12, 31 and 34 of the Constitution that require religious oaths to take up senior public office positions, taking into account the Committee’s general comment No. 22 (1993) on freedom of thought, conscience and religion, concerning the right not to be compelled to reveal one’s thoughts or adherence to a religion or belief in public;
(b) Take the appropriate measures to provide secular education through the establishment of non-denominational schools and ensure the further amendment of section 37 (1) of the Employment Equality Act in a way that bars all forms of discrimination in employment in the fields of education and health.
Follow-up
50. In accordance with rule 75, paragraph 1, of the Committee’s rules of procedure, the State party is requested to provide, by 28 July 2025, information on the implementation of the recommendations made by the Committee in paragraphs 12 (Accountability for past human rights violations), 18 (Non-discrimination, hate speech and hate crime) and 42 (Freedom of religion) above.

Read online…

Senior Times Podcast Interview

Michael Nugent had a chat with Conor Faughnan on his Senior Times podcast about his childhood and his adult life promoting democracy and atheism. It’s online now here.

UN Human Rights Committee

UN Human Rights Committee again tells Ireland to remove religious oaths in the constitution for president, judges, and Taoiseach

UN Human Rights Committee again tells Ireland to provide secular education through non-denominational schools

Atheist Ireland’s ‘notme.ie‘ is a place where people can publicly renounce the religion of their childhood. Currently there are 1934 symbolic defections. Many share their reasons for making a public symbolic defection which you can read here. 

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National

Victims’ families from 1972 IRA bomb in case against Catholic Church over priest’s alleged involvement

By Press Association

Podcasts, Videos and Interviews

Ireland

International

Ireland

• Next chapter of Catholic Church in Ireland ‘will be different from the last’ – Archbishop of Armagh  

International

• Tala Safwan: Egyptian TikToker held in Saudi over immoral video
• Pope Francis: Pontiff says he is deeply sorry to Canadian residential school survivors
• Pope Francis ‘begs forgiveness’ over abuse at church schools in Canada
• Vatican follows familiar playbook on Canadian children’s home scandal
• Portugal opens investigation into sexual abuse claims against Catholic Church
• Pope says genocide took place at church schools in Canada for indigenous children
• 84 yr old priest from the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston charged with sexual assault in Pennsylvania
• Saudi sisters found dead in Sydney ‘had fled family with cash haul
• Senate President Sue Lines no longer wants the Lords Prayer read before each sitting day in Parliament
• Fact Check: Is Joe Biden Giving $500k Grants to Spread Atheism Overseas?
• https://www.eurasiareview.com/25072022-morocco-religion-women-and-police-oped/Morocco: Religion, Women, And Police
• Other times popes have apologized for the sins of the Catholic Church
• Around the world, many countries restrict access to safe, legal, affordable abortion, putting thousands of people’s lives at risk. Restricting or banning abortion does not stop abortions from happening.
• Polish party wants to strengthen blasphemy law 
• Abortion deleted from UK Government-organised international human rights statement
• Senior Conservative MP weighs in against UK Government abortion rollback