McAleese warns on rule-of-law ‘backsliding’
Former President of Ireland Dr Mary McAleese has issued a warning about what she described as “backsliding” on democracy and the rule of law.
Dr McAleese – who served as President from 1997 to 2011 – was speaking at an Irish Rule of Law International (IRLI) event at the Law Society.
“Rather tragically, famous democracies are now the centre of that backsliding. And yet they use the words democracy and rule of law, but in a sense that none of us would recognise as having any credibility,” she stated.
“We only have to look at democracies – including in the European Union – where they have elected people who are not exemplars of the rule of law or respect for human rights,” the former president stated.
‘Imperial ambitions’
She said that it was sad to see democracies capable of electing autocrats and people with “imperial ambitions”.
Dr McAleese also condemned the resurgence of what she described as “warmongering talk”.
Her address pointed to connections between democratic decline, the economics of war, and environmental devastation, arguing that each stemmed from a failure to prioritise human dignity and the planet.
She also defended international bodies such as the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the EU as essential pillars of peace and accountability.
“The ICC sends a message to all people under abusers of the rule of law that, outside of them, there’s a world that actually dares to care,” Dr McAleese said.