The Irish government has agreed to make an application to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) for revision of a previously decided case against the United Kingdom. The ECtHR issued a decision in 1978 in Ireland v United Kingdom, finding that the UK had committed acts of inhuman and degrading treatment, but that it did not amount to torture. New information has since come to light that means that the complaint may meet the definition of torture and Ireland can apply to have the ECtHR reassess the case.
The group of men at the centre of the case, known as the ‘Hooded Men’, have successfully campaigned for the Irish government to submit their application for revision. The group is a collection of 14 men who had been interned in Northern Ireland in 1971 and subjected to violent interrogation techniques including prolonged hooding, continuous loud noise, sleep deprivation, food and water deprivation and forced stress positions. Based on the evidence at the time, the ECtHR held that there was a violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention), that the acts constituted inhuman and degrading treatment, but that it could not amount to torture. New facts were brought to light in an RTE programme The Torture Files, last June. It revealed evidence produced to the ECtHR was deliberately misleading. According to the Rules of the Court, parties can submit an application for revision of a previous decision if new evidence comes to light which might have a decisive influence on the outcome of the case. A party has six months after the date of discovery of the new facts to make their application, and for the Irish Government, the deadline is this Thursday.
Ireland v United Kingdom is a landmark case which has been a fundamental point of jurisprudence for Article 3 complaints. The Hooded Men wrote to the Government, and initiated High Court proceedings and a “telescoped hearing” was held this week. On 2 December, the Cabinet met to consider the case, and Charlie Flanagan, Minister for Foreign Affairs, told Justice Nicholas Kearns of the High Court that the Government supports the applications of the Hooded Men and will request a reopening of the case. In his statement he said:
“The Government is aware of the suffering of the individual men and of their families, of the significance of this case, and of the weight of these allegations... On the basis of the new material uncovered, it will be contended that the ill-treatment suffered by the Hooded Men should be recognised as torture."
Once the application is submitted, the ECtHR will make a preliminary decision on admissibility, and if successful will rehear the case to examine the violations under Article 3 of the Convention and will issue a new judgment.
Click here to read the news from the Irish Independent.
Click here to read the statement from Minister Charlie Flanagan.
Telescoped hearing: a telescoped hearing is one in which the judge decides on the admissibility of the case, as well as the substantive issues at the same sitting. This is used in time-sensitive cases or to avoid excessive costs and delays.