BBC ON THIS DAY | 8 | 1990: Ireland elects first woman president 1990: Ireland elects first woman president Voters in the Republic of Ireland have chosen their first female president. Unofficial returns suggest that Mary Robinson, who is standing as an independent, took nearly 40% of the vote in the first round. Ireland's system of proportional representation means the result will not be confirmed until tomorrow. But Mrs Robinson's performance in the first round means it is now impossible for anybody else to win. Senior sources in the camp of her main opponent, former deputy prime minister, Brian Lenihan, have already conceded victory to Mrs Robinson. It is the first time in 70 years that a presidential candidate put up by Mr Lenihan's party, Fianna Fail, has been defeated. Mrs Robinson, a Dublin barrister, is considered radical by Irish terms. A civil and human rights lawyer, she has campaigned for the liberalisation of laws prohibiting divorce and abortion for more than 20 years. However, she not only won the support of women countrywide but also polled well in traditionally conservative rural areas. The mother-of-three has been a member of the Irish Senate for more than 20 years.

She twice ran unsuccessfully for parliament as a Labour candidate. But five years ago she resigned from the Irish Labour party over the Anglo-Irish agreement because she felt unionists in Northern Ireland had not been consulted. Britain's 1990 recession: The world then - Telegraph Recession Britain's 1990 recession: The world then November 1 1990: Mary Robinson (pictured here with former US President Bill Clinton) defeated odds-on favourite Brian Lenihan to become the first female President of Ireland. Brian Lenihan, Irish Politician And Former Deputy Premier, 64 - NYTimes.com Brian Lenihan, Irish Politician And Former Deputy Premier, 64 By JAMES F. CLARITY Published: November 2, 1995 DUBLIN, Nov. 1— Brian Lenihan, a former Deputy Prime Minister who was defeated by Mary Robinson in Ireland's 1990 presidential campaign, died here today. He was 64. The cause was a liver ailment, according to Meath Hospital in Dublin. Mr. Lenihan was one of the country's leading politicians for nearly 40 years and an important official in several Governments run by his party, Fianna Fail.

He was Foreign Minister three times in the 1970's and 1980's and Deputy Prime Minister in a Government led by Prime Minister Charles J. Haughey. He was born in Dundalk, County Louth, on the border with the British province of Northern Ireland and was credited with trying to improve relations between the North, which is predominantly Protestant, and the overwhelmingly Roman Catholic Irish Republic. In particular, he sought to smooth differences between North and South during the Catholic hunger strikes in a British prison in the North in the early 1980's. In 1989 he had a liver transplant at the Mayo Clinic in the United States. His party nominated him to run for the presidency and, enjoying the sympathy vote after the successful operation left him looking gaunt and tired, he was favored to defeat Mrs. Robinson, a liberal lawyer who was the candidate of the smaller Labor Party. But during the campaign he changed his account of his role in a political dispute in 1982, which experts said cost him votes. He defeated Mrs.

Robinson in the first round of vote-counting in the 1990 election, but she won on the second round, by a margin of 52 per cent to 47. She is the first woman to be President of Ireland. In defeat he was gracious, and in an interview in 1992 said: "She speaks in a wide international cosmopolitan sense. She sees Ireland's future in a wider sense." Mr. Lenihan's role in Irish political life was diminished after his defeat, but he is described in "Who's Who in Irish Politics" as a man with "humor, incredible mental toughness, total lack of malice and 'no problem' philosophy." He wrote articles on Irish history and book reviews. When the current Northern Ireland peace effort began to accelerate two years ago, he served the Government of former Prime Minister Albert Reynolds through contacts with Sinn Fein, the political arm of the Irish Republican Army. Among his survivors is his sister, Mary O'Rourke, a member of Parliament and a former government minister.

BBC ON THIS DAY | 8 | 1990: Ireland elects first woman president 1990: Ireland elects first woman president VIDEO : Mary Robinson is Ireland's first female president Voters in the Republic of Ireland have chosen their first female president. Unofficial returns suggest that Mary Robinson, who is standing as an independent, took nearly 40% of the vote in the first round. Ireland's system of proportional representation means the result will not be confirmed until tomorrow. But Mrs Robinson's performance in the first round means it is now impossible for anybody else to win. Senior sources in the camp of her main opponent, former deputy prime minister, Brian Lenihan, have already conceded victory to Mrs Robinson. It is the first time in 70 years that a presidential candidate put up by Mr Lenihan's party, Fianna Fail, has been defeated. Mrs Robinson, a Dublin barrister, is considered radical by Irish terms. A civil and human rights lawyer, she has campaigned for the liberalisation of laws prohibiting divorce and abortion for more than 20 years. However, she not only won the support of women countrywide but also polled well in traditionally conservative rural areas.

The mother-of-three has been a member of the Irish Senate for more than 20 years. She twice ran unsuccessfully for parliament as a Labour candidate. But five years ago she resigned from the Irish Labour party over the Anglo-Irish agreement because she felt unionists in Northern Ireland had not been consulted. In Context Mary Robinson helped transform the role of Irish president from a largely ceremonial position to one of influence. She resigned a few months before end of her term in 1997 to become the United Nations Commissioner on Human Rights Her forthright style and uncompromising criticism of some countries' human rights records angered governments around the world. She made enemies in the United States after with her outspoken criticism of the detention of al-Qaeda suspects at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. In March 2002 Mrs Robinson announced she would not be seeking a second term in the UN post.

Search ON THIS DAY by date Mary Robinson : definition of Mary Robinson and synonyms of Mary Robinson (English) Harvard University Signature Mary Therese Winifred Robinson ( née Bourke) ( Irish : Máire Mhic Róibín; [2] born 21 May 1944) served as the seventh , and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights , from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister , campaigner and member of the Irish Senate (1969–1989). She defeated Fianna Fáil 's Brian Lenihan and Fine Gael 's Austin Currie in the 1990 presidential election becoming, as an Independent candidate nominated by the Labour Party , the Workers' Party and independent senators, the first elected president in the office's history not to have had the support of Fianna Fáil. [3] She is widely regarded as a transformative figure in the presidency of Ireland, who revitalised and liberalised a previously conservative, low-profile political office.

She resigned the presidency two months ahead of the end of her term of office to take up her post in the United Nations . Robinson has been Honorary President of Oxfam International since 2002 and of the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation EIUC since 2005, she is Chair of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and is also a founding member and Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders . Robinson was a member of the European members of the Trilateral Commission . After leaving the UN in 2002, Robinson formed Realizing Rights: the Ethical Globalization Initiative, [4] which came to a planned end at the end of 2010. Its core activities were 1) fostering equitable trade and decent work, 2) promoting the right to health and more humane migration policies, and 3) working to strengthen women's leadership and encourage corporate responsibility. The organisation also supported capacity building and good governance in developing countries.

Robinson returned to live in Ireland at the end of 2010, and has set up The Mary Robinson Foundation - Climate Justice, [5] which aims to be 'a centre for thought leadership, education and advocacy on the struggle to secure global justice for those many victims of climate change who are usually forgotten - the poor, the disempowered and the marginalised across the world.' Robinson is Chair of the Institute for Human Rights and Business [6] and Chancellor of the University of Dublin . Since 2004, she has also been Professor of Practice in International Affairs at Columbia University , where she teaches international human rights. Robinson also visits other colleges and universities where she lectures on human rights. Mary also sits on the Board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation , an organisation which supports good governance and great leadership in Africa, and is a member of the Foundation’s Ibrahim Prize Committee. In 2004, she received Amnesty International 's Ambassador of Conscience Award for her work in promoting human rights . Contents 13 External links Background Born Mary Therese Winifred Bourke in Ballina , County Mayo , in 1944, she is the daughter of two medical doctors. [7] Her father was Dr.

Aubrey Bourke of Ballina, County Mayo, while her mother was from Donegal , Dr. Tessa Bourke ( née O'Donnell) of Carndonagh , Inishowen . The Hiberno-Norman Bourkes have been in Mayo since the thirteenth century. Her family had links with many diverse political strands in Ireland. One ancestor was a leading activist in the Irish National Land League of Mayo and the Irish Republican Brotherhood ; an uncle, Sir Paget John Bourke, was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II after a career as a judge in the Colonial Service; while another relative was a Roman Catholic nun. Some branches of the family were members of the Anglican Church of Ireland while others were Roman Catholics . More distant relatives included William Liath de Burgh , Tiobóid mac Walter Ciotach Bourke , and Charles Bourke . Robinson was therefore born into a family that was a historical mix of rebels against and servants of the Crown. Mary Bourke attended Mount Anville Secondary School in Dublin[ citation needed ] and studied law at Trinity College, Dublin and Harvard Law School .

[8] In her twenties, she was appointed Reid Professor of Law in the college, considered to be a prestigious appointment made to accomplished lawyers. [9] Subsequent holders of the title have included her successor as Irish president Mary McAleese , Professor John F. Larkin Q.C., Irish Human Rights Commissioner and prominent pro-choice activist Senator Ivana Bacik . In 1970, Bourke married Nicholas Robinson . Despite the fact that her family had close links to the Church of Ireland , her marriage to a Protestant student caused a rift with her parents, who did not attend her wedding. The rift was eventually overcome in subsequent months. [10] Together they have three children. Her son Aubrey, a photographer and film-maker who is "committed to social justice", received media attention in 2011, when he participated in Occupy Dame Street . [11] Career in Seanad Éireann Robinson's early political career included election to Dublin City Council in 1979, where she served until 1983.

However she first hit national headlines as one of University of Dublin 's three members of Seanad Éireann to which she was first elected, as an independent candidate, in 1969. [12] From this body she campaigned on a wide range of liberal issues, including the right of women to sit on juries, the then requirement that all women upon marriage resign from the civil service, and the right to the legal availability of contraception . This latter campaign won her many enemies. Condoms and other items were regularly sent in the post to the senator by conservative critics and a false rumour was spread that the chain of pharmacies Hayes, Conyngham Robinson was owned by her family (and so therefore that her promotion of contraception was an attempt to benefit members of her family). So unpopular was her campaign among fellow politicians that when she introduced the first bill proposing to liberalise the law on contraception into the senate, no other member would agree to 'second' the initiative and so it could not be further discussed.

As a senator she served on the following parliamentary committees: Joint Committee on EC Secondary Legislation (1973–2011 Chairman of its Social Affairs Sub-Committee (1977–87) Chairman of its Legal Affairs Committee (1987–89) Joint Committee on Marital Breakdown (1983–1985) One of the Civic Offices (nicknamed the 'Bunkers'). Dublin Corporation controversially built them on what had been one of the world's best preserved Viking sites, at Wood Quay . Robinson gave legal support to the leaders of the unsuccessful campaign to save the site. For many years Robinson also worked as legal advisor for the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform with future Trinity College senator David Norris . Coincidentally, just as Mary McAleese replaced Mary Robinson as Reid Professor of Law in Trinity, and would succeed her to the Irish presidency, so Robinson replaced McAleese in the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform. Robinson initially served in the Irish upper house as an independent senator, but in the mid 1970s she joined the Labour Party.

Subsequently she attempted to be elected to Dáil Éireann (the lower house) but her efforts were unsuccessful, as were her efforts to be elected to Dublin Corporation . [13] Robinson, along with hundreds of thousands of other Irish people, clashed with Dublin Corporation when it planned to build its new administrative headquarters on Wood Quay , one of Europe's best preserved Viking sites. Though Robinson and people who in the past might not have espoused her causes, fought a determined battle, Wood Quay was ultimately bulldozed and concreted over, to build the controversial Civic Offices. In 1982, the Labour Party entered into a coalition government with Fine Gael . When Peter Sutherland was appointed the Republic of Ireland 's European Commissioner, Labour demanded the choice of the next Attorney General . Many expected Robinson to be the choice, but the party leader instead picked an unknown, new senior counsel called John Rogers . Shortly afterwards, Robinson resigned from the party in protest at the Anglo-Irish Agreement that the coalition under Garret FitzGerald had signed with the British Government of Margaret Thatcher . Robinson argued that unionist politicians in Northern Ireland should have been consulted as part of the deal, despite their reluctance to share power.

Robinson remained in the Seanad for four more years, although at this point many of the issues she had campaigned for had been tackled. Contraception had been legalised although heavily restricted, women were on juries, and the marriage bar on women in the civil service had been revoked. To the surprise of many, she decided not to seek re-election to the senate in 1989. One year later, however, Labour approached her about the Irish presidency, for which an election was to be held. She thought she was being asked her legal advice about the type of policy programme party leader Dick Spring was proposing. However, as she read the briefing notes, she began to realise that the programme was aimed at her. After some consideration, she agreed to become the first Labour nominee for the presidency and the first woman candidate in what was only the second presidential election to be contested by three candidates since 1945. Presidential candidacy Beating Noel Browne for the nomination Trinity College Dublin Robinson served as Reid Professor of Law in the University, as well as being one of its three elected senators in Seanad Éireann for twenty years.

Few, even in the Labour Party, gave Robinson much chance of winning the presidency, not least because of an internal party row over her nomination. With the Labour Party the first name for a possible candidate was an elderly former minister for Health, and hero to the left, Noel Browne . Browne was a household name for having done more than anybody else in Ireland for tackling Tuberculosis in the 1950s. However Browne's relationship with the Labour Party had been stormy. He was critical of its ties with Fine Gael and had co-founded the short lived Socialist Labour Party in 1977 after leaving the Labour Party. Although he was supported by left wing members within Labour such as Michael D. Higgins , he had little or no contact with Dick Spring and therefore had to live in hope of being nominated without the endorsement of the party leadership. The possibility that Browne might be nominated raised the possibility of an internal argument within the party. The fact that Browne was enthusiastic for candidacy, in a contest where Labour never before contested, now acted as pressure for Labour to find a candidate.

Spring did not feel that he could control Browne for the duration of the election, given Browne's history of defying party policy to such a degree that Browne had to leave several political parties. In these circumstances the decision to propose Robinson proved to be politically inspired. Robinson had an advantage in being the first candidate nominated for the election (and the first female), in that she could cover more meetings, public addresses and interviews. However she refused to be drawn on specifics in case she would alienate possible support. Robinson also received the backing of the Irish Times newspaper, and this proved hugely advantageous. Candidates from other parties Robinson's campaign was boosted by a lack of organisation in the main opposition party: Fine Gael . Fine Gael, having gambled that former Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald would run as its candidate (even though he had insisted for two years that he would not run for office) then approached another senior figure, Peter Barry , who had previously been willing to run but had run out of patience and was no longer interested. The party ultimately nominated the former civil rights campaigner Austin Currie , a respected new TD and former minister in Brian Faulkner 's power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland from 1973–74.

Currie had little experience in the politics of the Republic and was widely seen as the party's last choice, nominated only when no-one else was available. Fianna Fáil chose Tánaiste and Minister for Defence , Brian Lenihan . Lenihan was popular and widely seen as humorous and intelligent. Like Robinson he had himself delivered liberal policy reform (abolished censorship in the 1960s, for example), and he was seen as a near certainty to win the presidency. The only question asked was whether Robinson would beat Currie and come second. However, as the campaign proceeded, it became apparent that Lenihan's victory was by no means a foregone conclusion, and that Robinson was a serious contender. Crucial to her appeal was the deep unpopularity of the then Taoiseach Charles Haughey and the rising popularity of the Labour Party leader Dick Spring . Notwithstanding, Fianna Fáil knew they could count on Lenihan to mount a barnstorming campaign in the last few weeks. Election campaign The head start that Robinson attained in the nomination process, and the fact that the Fine Gael candidate was from Northern Ireland[ citation needed ], resulted in Robinson attaining second place in the polls.

Given that Fine Gael normally received 25% of the election result, and were reduced to third place this was an achievement in itself. She also obtained the backing of the Workers' Party of Ireland which was strong in Dublin and was considered crucial to getting working class votes. Robinson had proved superior media skills to both alternative candidates, and only now had to compete with the Fianna Fáil party election machine. At this point a transfer pact was decided upon between Fine Gael and Labour, as both parties were normally preferred partners for each other in general elections. However the Fine Gael candidate felt shortchanged by this deal as the media was more interested in the Robinson campaign, and privately he did not like Robinson. Currie later remarked that Lenihan was his personal friend, and that he felt personally sick at being asked to endorse somebody he did not like, for the sake of beating Lenihan. The possibility of transfers increased Robinson's chances if only Lenihan could be further weakened.

It emerged during the campaign that what Lenihan had told friends and insiders in private flatly contradicted his public statements on a controversial effort in 1982 by the then opposition Fianna Fáil to pressure President Hillery into refusing a parliamentary dissolution to then Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald; Hillery had resolutely rejected the pressure. Lenihan denied he had pressured the President but then a tape was produced of an 'on the record' interview he had given to a postgraduate student the previous May in which he frankly discussed attempting to apply pressure. Lenihan claimed that "on mature recollection" he hadn't pressured the President and had been confused in his interview with the student. But the government threatened to fall over the issue. Within days, the "unbeatable candidate" was dismissed as Tánaiste and Minister for Defence. Lenihan's integrity for the highest office in the land was seriously questioned. Lenihan's role in the event in 1982, seemed to imply that he could be instructed by Haughey in his duties, and that in effect electing Lenihan was in effect empowering the controversial Haughey.

In a pointless effort to weaken Robinson a government minister and Haughey ally, Pádraig Flynn launched a controversial personal attack on Mary Robinson "as a wife and mother" and "having a new-found interest in her family". [14] Flynn, even more controversially, also joked privately that Robinson would "turn the Áras into the Red Cow Inn". Flynn's tirade was itself attacked in response as "disgraceful" on live radio by Michael McDowell , a senior member of the Progressive Democrats , then in coalition with Fianna Fáil and up to that point supporting Lenihan's campaign. [15] When Robinson met McDowell later in a restaurant, she quipped, "with enemies like McDowell , who needs friends?" Flynn's attack was a fatal blow to Lenihan's campaign, causing many female supporters of Lenihan to vote for Robinson in a gesture of support. Lenihan's supported evaporated, and Haughey concluded that the election was as good as lost. Haughey distanced himself from Lenihan, as he did not want any share in the blame. This had unintended consequences, as disquiet with the Fianna Fáil organisation concerning Haughey's leadership increased dramatically.

An episode of an RTÉ current affairs television program featured Fianna Fáil members in Roscommon openly attacking Haughey's leadership and character. Many canvassers now restarted the campaign to get Lenihan elected. However, Lenihan's personal confidence was shattered and although he recovered somewhat in the polls towards the end of the campaign, it was insufficient. Lenihan won the first count with 44% of the first-preference votes — Robinson attaining 39%. [16] However, transfers from Austin Currie proved critical and the majority of these went as expected against Fianna Fáil. Lenihan became the first Fianna Fáil presidential candidate in the history of the office to lose a presidential election. Robinson now became President, the first woman to hold the office, and the first candidate to be second on first preference votes to win the presidency. Robinson became the first Labour Party candidate, the first woman and the first non-Fianna Fáil candidate in the history of contested presidential elections to win the presidency. Famously, RTÉ broadcast her victory speech live rather than the Angelus .

Her first television interview as President Elect was on the RTÉ children's television show The Den with Ray D'Arcy , Zig and Zag (puppets) and Dustin the Turkey . [17] Presidency Mary Robinson, flanked by defeated Fianna Fáil candidate Brian Lenihan (left) and Taoiseach Charles Haughey (right) on 9 November 1990. Robinson was inaugurated as the seventh President of Ireland on 3 December 1990. She proved a remarkably popular president, earning the praise of Lenihan himself, who before his death five years later, said that she was a better president than he ever could have been[ citation needed ]. She took an office that had a reputation as being little more than a retirement position for prominent politicians and breathed new life into the role. Robinson brought to the presidency legal knowledge, deep intellect and political experience. She reached out to the Irish 'diaspora' (the vast number of Irish emigrants and people of Irish descent). She also changed the face of Anglo-Irish relations , visiting Britain and became the first Irish president to meet Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.

She welcomed visits by senior British royals, most notably the Prince of Wales to her official residence, Áras an Uachtaráin . Her political profile changed also. Charles Haughey , Taoiseach when she was elected (and who had had to dismiss her rival, Brian Lenihan when the Progressive Democrats , the smaller party in government, threatened to leave the government unless he was sacked) had a diffident relationship with her[ citation needed ], at one stage preventing her from delivering the prestigious BBC Dimbleby Lecture . Haughey's successors, Albert Reynolds (Fianna Fáil: 1992–94), John Bruton (Fine Gael: 1994–97) and Bertie Ahern (Fianna Fáil:1997–2008) never hid their admiration of her work[ citation needed ], with Bruton's and Ahern's governments actively campaigning[ citation needed ] to get her the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights post when she sought it.

In the previous 52 years, only one address to the Oireachtas (parliament) had taken place, by Éamon de Valera in 1966, on the fiftieth anniversary of the Easter Rising . Robinson delivered two such Addresses. She was also invited to chair a committee to review the workings of the United Nations, but declined[ citation needed ] when asked to by the Irish government, who feared that her involvement might make it difficult for it to oppose the proposals that would result. Controversially, on one trip to Belfast she met with the local MP, Gerry Adams , the President of Sinn Féin . Foreign Minister Dick Spring, who was leader of the Labour Party, advised her not to meet Adams, whose party was linked with the Provisional IRA . However the Government refused to formally advise her not to meet with him. She felt it would be wrong, in the absence of such formal advice, for her as head of state not to meet the local member of parliament during her visit, and was photographed publicly shaking his hand.

During her various visits to Northern Ireland, she in fact regularly met politicians of all hues, including David Trimble of the Ulster Unionist Party and John Hume of the Social Democratic and Labour Party . To the surprise of her critics, who had seen her as embodying liberalism that the Catholic Church disapproved of, she had a close working relationship with the Church. She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad regularly, and became the first president to host an Áras reception for the Christian Brothers . When on a working trip to Rome, she requested, and was granted, an audience with Pope John Paul II . The outfit she wore was condemned by a controversial young priest, Fr. David O'Hanlon , in The Irish Times for supposedly breaking Vatican dress codes on her visit; the Vatican denied that she had — the Vatican dress codes had been changed early in John Paul's pontificate — an analysis echoed by Ireland's Roman Catholic Bishops who distanced themselves from Fr. O' Hanlon's comments.

[18] Popularity She invited groups not normally invited to presidential residences to visit her in Áras an Uachtaráin; from the Christian Brothers , a large religious order who ran schools throughout Ireland but had never had its leaders invited to the Áras, to G.L.E.N., the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network . She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad, Irish famine relief charities, attended international sports events, met the Pope and, to the fury of the People's Republic of China, met the 14th Dalai Lama . She famously put a special symbolic light in her kitchen window in Áras an Uachtaráin which was visible to the public as it overlooked the principal public view of the building, as a sign of remembering Irish emigrants around the world. (Placing a light in a darkened window to guide the way of strangers was an old Irish folk custom .) Robinson's symbolic light became an acclaimed symbol of an Ireland thinking about its sons and daughters around the world. Famously, she visited Rwanda where she brought world attention to the suffering in that state in the aftermath of its civil war. After her visit, she spoke at a press conference, where she became visibly emotional.

As a lawyer trained to be rational, she was furious at her emotion, but it moved everyone who saw it. One media critic who had slated her presidential ideas in 1990, journalist and Sunday Tribune editor Vincent Browne passed her a note at the end of the press conference saying simply "you were magnificent."[ citation needed ] Browne's comments matched the attitudes of Irish people on Robinson's achievements as president between 1990 and 1997. By half way through her term of office her popularity rating reached an unheard of 93%. [19] In one of her roles as president, the signing into laws of Bills passed by the Oireachtas she was called upon to sign two very significant Bills that she had fought for throughout her political career. A Bill to fully liberalise the law on the availability of contraceptives , and a law fully decriminalising homosexuality and unlike Britain and much of the world at the time, providing for a fully equal age of consent , treating heterosexuals and LGBT people alike. Resignation as President Robinson resigned the presidency before her term of office was complete to take up a new role with the United Nations .

Upon her resignation as president the role of president (acting head of state ) was transferred to the Presidential Commission (which comprised the Chief Justice , the Ceann Comhairle of the Dáil and the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad ) from 12 September to 11 November 1997, when the new president Mary McAleese was sworn in. High Commissioner for Human Rights Robinson became the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on 12 September 1997, resigning the Presidency a few weeks early with the approval of Irish political parties in order to take up the post. Media reports suggested that she had been head-hunted for the post by Secretary General of the United Nations Kofi Annan to assume an advocacy as opposed to administrative role, in other words to become a public campaigner outlining principles rather than the previous implementational and consensus-building model. The belief was that the post had ceased to be seen as the voice of general principles and had become largely bureaucratic. Robinson's role was to set the human rights agenda within the organisation and internationally, refocusing its appeal. Robinson meeting families in Somalia, 2011.

In November 1997, still new to her post, Robinson delivered the Romanes Lecture in Oxford on the topic of "Realizing Human Rights"; she spoke of the "daunting challenge" ahead of her, and how she intended to set about her task. She concluded the lecture with words from The Golden Bough : "If fate has called you, the bough will come easily, and of its own accord. Otherwise, no matter how much strength you muster, you never will manage to quell it or cut it down with the toughest of blades." Robinson was the first High Commissioner for Human Rights to visit Tibet , making her trip in 1998. During her tenure she criticised the Irish system of permits for non- EU immigrants as similar to "bonded labour" and criticised the United States' use of capital punishment . Though she had initially announced her intention to serve a single four-year period, she extended the term by a year following an appeal from Annan, allowing her to preside over the 2001 World Conference against Racism in Durban , South Africa, as Secretary-General.

Robinson's posting as High Commissioner ended in 2002, after sustained pressure from the United States led her to declare she was no longer able to continue her work. [20] Robinson had criticised the US for violating human rights in its war on terrorism and the World Conference against Racism was widely condemned in the US for its perceived anti-semitism . Michael Rubin even went so far as to suggest in a tongue-in-cheek article that she be tried for war crimes for presiding over "an intellectual pogrom against Jews and Israel." [21] United States Congressman Tom Lantos faulted her for neglecting "to provide the leadership to keep the conference on track" and accused her of shouldering "much of the responsibility for the debacle." [22] On 9 November 2006 in Yogyakarta , she attended the international Conference, then she became one of 29 signators of the Yogyakarta Principles , adopted for protection of LGBT rights by International Human Rights Law .

The Elders On 18 July 2007 in Johannesburg, South Africa, Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel , and Desmond Tutu convened a group of world leaders to contribute their wisdom, independent leadership and integrity to tackle some of the world's toughest problems. Nelson Mandela announced the formation of this new group, The Elders , in a speech he delivered on the occasion of his 89th birthday. Archbishop Tutu will serve as the Chair of The Elders. The founding members of this group also include Graça Machel , Kofi Annan , Ela Bhatt , Gro Harlem Brundtland , Jimmy Carter , Li Zhaoxing and Muhammad Yunus . "This group can speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken," Mandela commented. "Together we will work to support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict, and inspire hope where there is despair." The Elders will be independently funded by a group of Founders, including Richard Branson , Peter Gabriel , Ray Chambers; Michael Chambers; Bridgeway Foundation; Pam Omidyar, Humanity United; Amy Robbins; Shashi Ruia, Dick Tarlow; and the United Nations Foundation .

She is a member of the Club of Madrid . [23] University of Dublin Robinson is the twenty fourth, and first female, Chancellor of University of Dublin (i.e. Trinity College). She represented the University in the Senate for over twenty years and held the Reid Chair in Law. Post president period This section needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (January 2010) In 1991, Mary Robinson was awarded honorary doctorates by Brown University and the University of Cambridge . Robinson is a member of the Club de Madrid, a group of former democratic leaders who work to strengthen democratic leadership and governance. She was formerly president of the Club. [24] In 1997 she was one of the two winners of the North-South Prize . [25] In 2002 she was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize for her outstanding work as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and in 2003 the prestigious Otto Hahn Peace Medal in Gold of the United Nations Association of Germany in Berlin.

In 2004, Mary Robinson was awarded an Honorary Degree by McGill University . [26] In March 2005, Robinson gave a lecture entitled "Human Rights and Ethical Globalization" at the University of San Diego 's Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Distinguished Lecture Series. In May 2005 she was awarded the first "Outspoken" award from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission ( IGLHRC ). In October 2006 she was awarded the Social Science Principes de Asturias Prize. The jury commended her for "offering her non-conformist, brave and far-reaching voice to those who cannot speak for themselves or can barely be heard." In the same month she was the keynote speaker at The Future of International Criminal Justice Symposium hosted by the Penn State Dickinson School of Law , where she spoke on "The Rule of Law and International Human Rights in Challenging Times". In 2007, she joined the Arab Democracy Foundation as a founding member of its Board of Trustees. In January 2009, Robinson was appointed as head of the International Commission of Jurists .

[27] In September 2009, she was awarded the 2009 Inamori Ethics Prize by Case Western Reserve University where she gave a lecture entitled "New Challenges to Human Rights in the 21st Century" at Severance Hall in Cleveland, OH. In the same month, she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Bath at the 1100th anniversary celebration of the Diocese of Bath and Wells, where she gave a lecture entitled "Realising rights: the role of religion in human rights in the future". [28] On 29 September 2010, at a ceremony in Dublin, Mary Robinson received a knighthood from the Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem. As a former Head of State and in recognition of her significant contribution towards human rights she was awarded the honour of Dame Grand Cross of Merit. In September 2012 Mary Robinson's memoir Everybody Matters will be published with Hodder & Stoughton . [29] World Justice Project Mary Robinson serves as an Honorary Co-Chair for the World Justice Project .

The World Justice Project works to lead a global, multidisciplinary effort to strengthen the Rule of Law for the development of communities of opportunity and equity. AWEPA Robinson currently serves on the Eminent Advisory Board [30] of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa ( AWEPA ), which has been used as a platform to promote her messages on issues such as the Famine in the Horn of Africa. [31] [32] Presidential Medal of Freedom Robinson receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama . In July 2009, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom , the highest civilian honour awarded by the United States. [33] [34] In presenting the award to Robinson, U.S. President Barack Obama said "Mary Robinson learned early on what it takes to make sure all voices are heard. As a crusader for women and those without a voice in Ireland, Mary Robinson was the first woman elected President of Ireland, before being appointed U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. When she traveled abroad as President, she would place a light in her window that would draw people of Irish descent to pass by below.

Today, as an advocate for the hungry and the hunted, the forgotten and the ignored, Mary Robinson has not only shone a light on human suffering, but illuminated a better future for our world." [35] Amnesty International congratulated Mary Robinson on being named as a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. "Mary Robinson has long defended the rights of the underdog and has never shirked from speaking truth to power,” said Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International. "As an outspoken, passionate and forceful advocate for human rights and human dignity in all regions of the world, Mary Robinson has helped countless individuals from Sierra Leone to Rwanda to the Balkans to Somalia and to the Middle East," she continued. [36] Nelson Mandela [37] and Graca Machel [37] also congratulated Robinson on her acceptance of the award. The award was criticised by some American and European Jewish groups, while other groups offered support for the award. Parties opposed to the award included AIPAC , the Anti-Defamation League , the European Jewish Congress, and John R. Bolton . [38] John R.

Bolton, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations, stated that those in the administration who recommended her either ignored her anti-Israel history, or missed it entirely. [39] On the other hand, a group of Israeli human rights organizations including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Bimkom, B'Tselem, Gisha, Hamoked, Physicians for Human Rights and Yesh Din, stated "as leaders of a sector within Israeli civil society that monitors and often criticizes government and military policy for violating human rights, we do not see such actions as plausible reason for denying Mrs. Robinson the award." [38] In response to the protests by some Jewish groups and commentators, Robinson said she was “surprised and dismayed” and that "this is old, recycled, untrue stuff,” “I have been very critical of the Palestinian side. My conduct continues to be on the side of tackling anti-Semitism and discrimination,” Robinson said. [40] "There's a lot of bullying by certain elements of the Jewish community. They bully people who try to address the severe situation in Gaza and the West Bank. Archbishop Desmond Tutu gets the same criticism," Robinson also said.

[41] In an open letter to Robinson, Hillel Neuer , executive director of UN Watch , rejected Robinson's claim at being misunderstood or bullied by those who criticize her role in Durban. He said that she failed to confront purveyors of anti-Israel rhetoric. "You may not have been the chief culprit of the Durban debacle, but you will always be its preeminent symbol", he added. [38] When asked about the opposition to the award by AIPAC and other Jewish groups, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs replied "Mary Robinson was the first female President of Ireland, and she is somebody whom we are honoring as a prominent crusader of women's rights in Ireland and throughout the world." [42] United States Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, [43] United States Senate Assistant Majoriy Leader Dick Durbin, [44] and some other legislators [45] welcomed the presenting of the award to Robinson." [46] Forty-five Republican Congressmen sent a letter to President Obama raised issue with the presentation citing "her failed, biased record as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights".

[38] In a letter to President Obama, Nancy Rubin , a former American ambassador to the UN Human Rights Commission , welcomed the award and praised Robinson as a "dedicated crusader for human rights for all people". [47] Oxfam confederation also expressed its strong support for Robinson. [48] [49] The Council of Women World Leaders, [50] the Champalimaud Foundation, [51] and the ImagineNations Group [52] welcomed the presentation of the Medal of Freedom to Robinson. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission congratulated Robinson, saying she "helped advance recognition of the human rights of LGBT people in her capacity as President of Ireland and as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. She has been unwavering in her passionate call to end torture, persecution, and discrimination against LGBT people globally." [53] References General Media coverage in The Irish Times , The Irish Independent , The Examiner (now renamed the Irish Examiner ), The Star , The Irish Mirror , The Irish Sun, Sunday Tribune , The Sunday Independent, The Sunday Times , The Times , The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian .

Also briefing notes issued on various occasions (notably state, official or personal visits by Robinson abroad) supplied by the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Buckingham Palace , Áras an Uachtaráin, the Holy See and the press offices of the United Nations (including [54] the text of her Romanes Lecture in November 1997). Some background came via an interview with Mrs. Robinson. Specific ^ Robinson stood as an independent presidential candidate but received support from the Labour Party , the Workers' Party . ^ "DPI Press Kit" . United Nations. 11 November 1997. . Retrieved 31 October 2008.

Further reading Stephen Collins, Spring and the Labour Party (O'Brien Press, 1993) ISBN 0-86278-349-6 Eamon Delaney, An Accidental Diplomat: My Years in the Irish Foreign Service (1987–1995) (New Island Books, 2001) ISBN 1-902602-39-0 Garret FitzGerald, All in a Life (Gill and Macmillan, 1991) ISBN 0-7171-1600-X Fergus Finlay, Mary Robinson: A President with a Purpose (O'Brien Press, 1991) ISBN 0-86278-257-0 Fergus Finlay.

Snakes & Ladders (New Island Books, 1998) ISBN 1-874597-76-6 Jack Jones, In Your Opinion: Political and Social Trends in Ireland through the Eyes of the Electorate (Townhouse, 2001) ISBN 1-86059-149-3 Ray Kavanagh, The Rise and Fall of the Labour Party:1986-1999 (Blackwater Press 2001) ISBN 1-84131-528-1 Gabriel Kiely, Anne o'Donnell, Patricia Kennedy, Suzanne Quin (eds) Irish Social Policy in Context (University College Dublin Press, 1999) ISBN 1-900621-25-8 Brian Lenihan, For the Record (Blackwater Press, 1991) ISBN 0-86121-362-9 Mary McQuillan, Mary Robinson: A President in Progress (Gill and Macmillan, 1994) ISBN 0-7171-2251-4 Olivia O'Leary &

 Helen Burke, Mary Robinson: The Authorised Biography (Lir/Hodder & Stoughton, 1998) ISBN 0-340-71738-6 Michael O'Sullivan, Mary Robinson: The Life and Times of an Irish Liberal (Blackwater Press, 1993) ISBN 0-86121-448-X Lorna Siggins, The Woman Who Took Power in the Park: Mary Robinson, President of Ireland, 1990-1997 (Mainstream Publishing, 1997) ISBN 1-85158-805-1 External links Mary Robinson - Example Problems Mary Robinson Jump to: navigation , search Mary Robinson is also the name of an English poet, see Mary Robinson (poet) Mary Robinson ( Irish name Máire Bhean Mhic Róibín; born 21 May 1944 ) was the first female President of Ireland , serving from 1990 to 1997 , and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights , from 1997 to 2002 .

She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister , campaigner and member of the Irish senate ( 1969 - 1989 ). She defeated Fianna Fáil 's Brian Lenihan in the 1990 presidential election becoming, as a candidate of the Labour Party , the first elected president in the office's history not to have the support of Fianna Fáil. She is credited by many as having revitalised and liberalised a previously conservative political office. She resigned the presidency four months ahead of the end of her term of office to take up her post in the United Nations . Robinson has been Honorary President of Oxfam International since 2002, and she is also a founding member and Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders. She serves on many boards including the Vaccine Fund. Robinson’s newest project is the Ethical Globalization Initiative (EGI), which seeks to incorporate human rights into the globalization process and support capacity building and good governance in developing countries. Since 2004, she has also been Professor of Practice in International Affairs at Columbia University , where she teaches international human rights.

MARY ROBINSON Fine Gael : Austin Currie, TD </table> 9.1 Other source material Background Born Mary Therese Bourke in Ballina , County Mayo in 1944 , Robinson was the daughter of two medical doctors. The Hiberno-Norman Bourkes have been in Mayo since the thirteenth century. Like many who came to Ireland with the Norman invasion, it was said of the Bourkes that they ended up "more Irish than the Irish themselves". Her family had links with many diverse political strands in Ireland. One ancestor was a leading activist in the Mayo Land League and the Irish Republican Brotherhood ; an uncle, Sir Paget John Bourke , was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II after a career as a judge in the Colonial Service; while another relative was a Catholic nun. Some branches of the family were members of the Anglican Church of Ireland while others were Roman Catholics . Robinson was therefore born into a family that was a historical mix of rebels against and servants of the Crown.

Though Catholic, Mary Bourke received the permission of the then Archbishop of Dublin , John Charles McQuaid, DD to study in Trinity College, Dublin ; at the time Catholics were forbidden by church rules from studying in Trinity, founded by Queen Elizabeth I and once a Protestant , Unionist bastion, unless they had the (rarely-granted) permission of a bishop. In her twenties, she was appointed Reid Professor of Law in the college, considered to be a prestigious appointment made to accomplished lawyers. Subsequent holders of the title have included her successor as Irish president Mary McAleese , Irish Human Rights Commissioner and anti-abortion campaigner Professor William Binchy , and, the current holder of the position, abortion rights campaigner Ivana Bacik . In 1970 she married Nicholas Robinson . Despite the fact that her family had close links to the Church of Ireland , her marriage to a Protestant student caused a rift with her parents, who did not attend her wedding, although the rift was eventually overcome in subsequent years. She has three children, two of whom were raised as Roman Catholics. Career in the senate The Seanad chamber Mary Robinson served in the upper house for twenty years, from 1969 to 1989.

Robinson's early political career included election to Dublin City Council in 1979 , where she served until 1983 . However she first hit national headlines as one of Trinity College's three members of Seanad Éireann (the Irish senate) to which she was first elected, as an independent candidate, in 1969. From this body she campaigned on a wide range of liberal issues, including the right of women to sit on juries, the then requirement that all women upon marriage resign from the civil service and for the right to the legal availability of contraception . This latter campaign won her many enemies. Condoms and other items were regularly sent in the post to the senator by conservative critics and a false rumour was spread that a chain of pharmacies that had the name 'Robinson' in the title was owned by her family (and so therefore that her promotion of contraception was an attempt to benefit members of her family). So unpopular was her campaign among fellow politicians that when she introduced the first bill proposing to liberalise the law on contraception into the senate, no other member would agree to 'second' the initiative and so it could not be further discussed.

As a senator she served on the following parliamentary committees: Joint Committee on EC Secondary Legislation (1973- 89) Chairman of its Social Affairs Sub-Committee (1977-87) Chairman of its Legal Affairs Committee (1987-89) Joint Committee on Marital Breakdown (1983-1985) For many years Robinson also worked as legal advisor for the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform with future Trinity College senator David Norris . Coincidentally, just as Mary McAleese replaced Mary Robinson as Reid Professor of Law in Trinity, and would succeed her to the Irish presidency, so Robinson replaced McAleese in the Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform. File:Bunker.jpg One of the Civic Offices (nicknamed the 'Bunkers'). Dublin Corporation controversially built them on what had been one of the world's best preserved viking sites, at Wood Quay . Robinson gave legal support to the leaders of the unsuccessful campaign to save the site. Robinson initially served in the Irish upper house as an independent senator, but in the mid 1970s she joined the Labour Party.

Subsequently she attempted to be elected to Dáil Éireann (the lower house) but her efforts were unsuccessful, as were her efforts to be elected to Dublin Corporation . Robinson, along with hundreds of thousands of other Irish people, clashed with Dublin Corporation when it planned to built its new administrative headquarters on Wood Quay , one of Europe's best preserved Viking sites. Though Robinson and people who in the past might not have espoused her causes, fought a determined battle, Wood Quay was ultimately bulldozed and concreted over, to build the controversial Civic Offices. In 1982 , the Labour Party entered into a coalition government with Fine Gael . When Peter Sutherland was appointed the Republic of Ireland 's European Commissioner, Labour demanded the choice of the next attorney-general . Many expected Robinson to be the choice, but the party leader instead picked an unknown, new senior counsel called John Rogers . Shortly afterwards, Robinson resigned from the party in protest at the Anglo-Irish Agreement that the coalition under Garret FitzGerald had signed with the British Government of Margaret Thatcher . Robinson argued that unionist politicians in Northern Ireland should have been consulted as part of the deal, despite their reluctance to share power.

Robinson remained in the Seanad for four more years, although at this point many of the issues she had campaigned for had been tackled. Contraception had been legalised although heavily restricted, women were on juries, and the marriage bar on women in the civil service had been revoked. To the surprise of many, she decided not to seek re-election to the senate in 1989 . One year later, however, Labour approached her about the Irish presidency, for which an election was to be held. She thought she was being asked her legal advice about the type of policy programme party leader Dick Spring was proposing. However, as she read the briefing notes, she began to realise that the programme was aimed at her. After some consideration, she agreed to become the first Labour nominee for the presidency and the first woman candidate in what was only the second presidential election to be contested by three candidates since 1945 . Presidential candidacy File:TCD.jpg Trinity College Dublin Robinson served as Reid Professor of Law in the University, as well as being one of its three elected senators in Seanad Éireann for twenty years.

Few, even in the Labour Party, gave Robinson much chance of winning the presidency, not least because of an internal party row over her nomination. Senior partisans of the political left had championed the cause of an elderly former minister and hero to the left, Dr. Noel Browne . For his opponents on the left Browne was a brilliant but erratic maverick who had throughout his career fallen out with most of his colleagues, effectively once brought down a government, and been thrown out of a succession of political parties (even ones he had himself founded), from Clann na Poblachta to Fianna Fáil , Labour and the Socialist Labour Party . While Browne was regarded by many as unelectable, Robinson proved a success. Months before her rivals had even been chosen, she toured the country, creating a favourable impression with a well thought-out concept of how the office of President might be revitalised. Candidates from other parties Robinson's campaign was boosted by a lack of organisation in the main opposition party: Fine Gael .

Fine Gael, having gambled that former Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald would run as its candidate (even though he had insisted for two years that he would not run for office) then approached another senior figure, Peter Barry , who had previously been willing to run but had run out of patience and was no longer interested. The party ultimately nominated the former civil rights campaigner Austin Currie , a respected new TD (MP) and former minister in Brian Faulkner 's power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland from 1973-1974. Currie had little experience in the politics of the Republic and was widely seen as the party's last choice, nominated only when no-one else was available. Fianna Fáil chose Tánaiste and Minister for Defence , Brian Lenihan . Lenihan was popular and widely seen as humorous and intelligent. Like Robinson he had himself delivered liberal policy reform (abolished censorship in the 1960s, for example), and he was seen as a near certainty to win the presidency. The only question asked was whether Robinson would beat Currie and come second.

However, as the campaign proceeded, it became apparent that Lenihan's victory was by no means a foregone conclusion, and that Robinson was a serious contender. Crucial to her appeal was the deep unpopularity of the then Taoiseach Charles J. Haughey and the rising popularity of the Labour Party leader Dick Spring . Notwithstanding, Fianna Fáil knew they could count on Lenihan to mount a barnstorming campaign in the last few weeks. Lenihan campaign implodes Brian Lenihan Robinson's main rival for the presidency. However, Lenihan's credibility was shaky and it emerged during the campaign that what he told friends and insiders in private flatly contradicted his public statements on a controversial effort in 1982 by the then opposition Fianna Fáil to pressure outgoing President Hillery into refusing a parliamentary dissolution to then Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald; Hillery had resolutely rejected the pressure. File:Hillery big.jpg President Hillery Revelations that he had stood up to political pressure from Fianna Fáil in 1982 won him considerable praise.

Lenihan denied he had pressured the President but then a tape was produced of an 'on the record' interview he had given to a postgraduate student the previous May in which he frankly discussed attempting to apply pressure. Lenihan claimed that "on mature recollection" he hadn't pressured the President and had been confused in his interview with the student. But the government threatened to fall over the issue. Within days, the "unbeatable candidate" was dismissed as Tánaiste and Minister for Defence. Though he recovered in the polls towards the end of the campaign, Lenihan became the first Fianna Fáil presidential candidate in the history of the office to lose a presidential election. At this point a cabinet colleague, Padraig Flynn launched a controversial personal attack on Mary Robinson "as a wife and mother", an attack that was itself attacked in response as "disgraceful" on live radio by Michael McDowell , a senior member of the Progressive Democrats , then in coalition with Fianna Fáil and up to that point supporting Lenihan's campaign. [1] When Robinson met McDowell later in a restaurant, she quipped, "with enemies like McDowell , who needs friends?".

Flynn's attack was a fatal blow to Lenihan's campaign, causing many female supporters of Lenihan to vote for Robinson in a gesture of support. Robinson became the first Labour candidate, the first woman and the first non-Fianna Fáil candidate in the history of contested presidential elections to win the presidency. Famously, RTÉ broadcast her victory speech live rather than the Angelus . Presidency Robinson was inaugurated as the seventh President of Ireland on December 3 , 1990 . She proved a remarkably popular president, earning the praise of Lenihan himself, who before his death five years later, said that she was a better president than he ever could have been. She took on an office that had a low profile but which, once the pressures placed on President Hillery back in 1982 became known, suddenly was taken very seriously again. (As was Hillery, who was seen as a national hero because of his evident integrity in standing up to former colleagues in 1982 .) She brought to the presidency legal knowledge, deep intellect and political experience. Her clear vision enabled her to raise issues in a manner which did not break the tight constraints of a very limited office.

She took on the issue of what she called the 'diaspora', the vast number of Irish emigrants and people of Irish descent. She also changed the face of Anglo-Irish relations , visiting Britain and in one particular epoch-making moment, became the first Irish president to visit Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. She welcomed visits by senior British royals, most notably the Prince of Wales to her residence, Áras an Uachtaráin . File:Myrobbo.jpg Mary Robinson resigns as President of Ireland, September 1997. From left to right: Pat Rabbitte (since Leader of the Labour Party), Former Taoiseach John Bruton, Tánaiste Mary Harney, Nick Robinson (husband), President Robinson, Taoiseach] Bertie Ahern, then Labour Leader Ruairi Quinn and three members of the collective vice-presidency, the Presidential Commission ; Cathaoirleach Senator Liam Cosgrave, Chief Justice Liam Hamilton and Ceann Comhairle Seamus Patterson Her political profile changed also. Charles J.

Haughey , Taoiseach when she was elected (and who had had to dismiss her rival, Brian Lenihan when the Progressive Democrats, the smaller party in government, threatened to leave the government unless he was sacked) had a diffident relationship with her, at one stage preventing her from delivering the prestigious BBC Dimbleby Lecture . Haughey's successors, Albert Reynolds (Fianna Fáil: 1992-94), John Bruton (Fine Gael: 1994-97) and Bertie Ahern (Fianna Fáil:1997- ) never hid their admiration of her work, with Bruton's and Ahern's governments actively campaigning to get her the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights post when she sought it. In the previous fifty-two years, only one address to the Oireachtas (parliament) had taken place, by Eamon de Valera in 1966, on the fiftieth anniversary of the Easter Rising . Robinson delivered two such Addresses, though they were thought too long and intellectually obscure and not judged a success.

She was also invited to chair a committee to review the workings of the United Nations, but declined when asked to by the Irish government, who feared that her involvement might make it difficult for it to oppose the proposals that would result if their head of state had been chair of the review group. Controversially, on one trip to Belfast she met with the local MP, Gerry Adams , the President of Sinn Féin . Foreign Minister Dick Spring, who was leader of the Labour Party, advised her not to meet Adams, whose party has links with the Provisional IRA . However the Government refused to formally advise her not to meet with him. She felt it would be wrong, in the absence of such formal advice, for her as head of state not to meet the local member of parliament during her visit, and was photographed publicly shaking his hand. During her various visits to Northern Ireland, she in fact regularly met politicians of all hues, including David Trimble of the Ulster Unionist Party and John Hume of the Social Democratic and Labour Party .

High Commissioner for Human Rights Robinson became the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on 12 September 1997 , resigning the Presidency a few weeks early with the approval of Irish political parties in order to take up the post. Media reports suggested that she had been headhunted for the post by Secretary General of the United Nations Kofi Annan to assume an advocacy as opposed to administrative role, in other words to become a public campaigner outlining principles rather than the previous implementational and consensus-building model. The belief was that the post had ceased to be seen as the voice of general principles and had become largely bureaucratic. Robinson's role was to set the human rights agenda within the organisation and internationally, refocusing its appeal. In 1998 she became the first Commissioner to visit Tibet . During her tenure she criticised the Irish system of permits for non- EU immigrants as similar to "bonded labour" and criticised the United States use of the death penalty . Though she initially announced her intention of serving just one period in the post, after an appeal from Annan she extended her term by one year.

Following her retirement (after the United States had made their displeasure at her criticism known), the post again went to an administrator who was tasked with implementing the role of the High Commission as defined by Robinson's high profile advocacy. Popularity She invited groups not normally invited to presidential residences to visit her in Áras an Uachtaráin; from the Christian Brothers , a large religious order who ran schools throughout Ireland but had never had its leaders invited to the Áras, to G.L.E.N., the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network . She visited Irish nuns and priests abroad, Irish famine relief charities, attended international sports events, met the Pope (where she was condemned by a young right wing priest in The Irish Times for supposedly breaking Vatican dress codes on her visit; the Vatican insisted she hadn't, an analysis echoed by Ireland's Roman Catholic Bishops who disowned the controversial priest's comments) and, to the fury of the People's Republic of China , met Tenzin Gyatso (the 14th Dalai Lama ).

She famously put a special symbolic light in her kitchen window in Áras an Uachtaráin which was visible to the public as it overlooked the principal public view of the building, as a sign of remembering Irish emigrants around the world. (Placing a light in a darkened window to guide the way of strangers was an old Irish folk custom .) Robinson's symbolic light became an acclaimed symbol of an Ireland thinking about its sons and daughters around the world. Famously, she visited Rwanda where she brought world attention to the suffering in that state in the aftermath of its civil war. After her visit, she spoke at a press conference, where she became visibly emotional. As a lawyer trained to be rational, she was furious at her emotion, but it moved everyone who saw it. One media critic who had slated her presidential ideas in 1990, journalist and Sunday Tribune editor Vincent Browne passed her a note at the end of the press conference saying simply "you were magnificent." Mary Robinson, on the former Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 's throne, signs her Declaration of Office, using de Valera 's quill .

Browne's comments matched the attitudes of Irish people on Robinson's achievements as president between 1990 and 1997. By half way through her term of office her popularity rating reached an unheard of 93%. When in 1997 she resigned from the Presidency three months early to take up the post of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights she was the most widely recognised president since de Valera, the most popular president of Ireland in the history of the office, so popular she was the first choice for re-election to the office if she had sought it, even of the late Brian Lenihan 's Fianna Fáil. In the final photocall of her presidency, former taoisigh and senior government figures stood beside her, beaming with pride at what had been, by any standards, a remarkably successful presidency that had changed the face of the office, the office-holder and Ireland. (See photo above) In one of her roles as president, the signing into laws of Bills passed by the Oireachtas she was called upon to sign two very significant Bills that she had fought for throughout her political career.

A Bill to fully liberalise the law on the availability of contraceptives , and a law fully decriminalising homosexuality and unlike Britain and much of the world at the time, providing for a fully equal age of consent , treating heterosexuals and homosexuals alike. In 2002 she was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize for her outstanding work as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. In May 2005 she was awarded the first "Outspoken" award from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission ( IGLHRC ). Footnotes ^ One elderly longtime Haughey critic and former minister dismissed by Haughey, Jim Gibbons , was physically assaulted in the main hall of Leinster House in October 1982 by a mob of Haughey supporters after one leadership heave against the leader. In the aftermath, new swivel doors were erected to prevent mobs pushing their way into the parliament building. Other critics were seen being punched and kicked in the courtyard outside the building. After his death over a decade later, Gibbons' son revealed that his father had never fully recovered from the physical assault on him.

Sent out to try to convince the electorate and the media that there was 'no problem' in the Fianna Fáil party, Lenihan was in no way a party to the behaviour of some of Haughey's supporters, but kept his personal distaste private. ^ McDowell, a former TD, had been a controversial figure in the government. Though with no seat in parliament, he was nevertheless projected as the party's "conscience", launching attacks on Fianna Fáil that caused considerable anger in Fianna Fáil. The PDs threatened to quit the government after the revelations about Lenihan. They gave Haughey an ultimatum: either hold an inquiry into the pressure placed on President Hillery, or dismiss Lenihan. Through professing loyalty to his "friend of thirty years" Haughey chose the latter option and dismissed Lenihan.

Additional reading Stephen Collins, Spring and the Labour Party (O'Brien Press, 1993) ISBN 0862783496 Eamon Delaney, An Accidential Diplomat: My Years in the Irish Foreign Service (1987-1995) (New Island Books, 2001) ISBN 1902602390 T. Ryle Dwyer, Short Fellow: A Biography of Charles J. Haughey (Marino Books, 1999) ISBN 1860231004 Garret FitzGerald, All in a Life (Gill and Macmillan, 1991) ISBN 071711600X Fergus Finlay, Mary Robinson: A President with a Purpose (O'Brien Press, 1991) ISBN 0862782570 Fergus Finlay.

Snakes & Ladders (New Island Books, 1998) ISBN 1874597766 Jack Jones, In Your Opinion: Political and Social Trends in Ireland through the Eyes of the Electorate (Townhouse, 2001) ISBN 13579108642 Ray Kavanagh, The Rise and Fall of the Labour Party:1986-1999 (Blackwater Press 2001) ISBN 1841315281 Gabriel Kiely, Anne o'Donnell, Patricia Kennedy, Suzanne Quin (eds) Irish Social Policy in Context (University College Dublin Press, 1999) ISBN 1900621258 ) Brian Lenihan, For the Record (Blackwater Press, 1991) ISBN 0861213629 Mary McQuillan, Mary Robinson: A President in Progress (Gill and Macmillan, 1994) ISBN 0717122514 Olivia O'Leary & Helen Burke, Mary Robinson: The Authorised Biography (Lir/Hodder

 & Stoughton, 1998) ISBN 0340717386 Michael O'Sullivan, Mary Robinson: The Life and Times of an Irish Liberal (Blackwater Press, 1993) ISBN 086121448X Lorna Siggins, The Woman Who Took Power in the Park: Mary Robinson, President of Ireland, 1990-1997 (Mainstream Publishing, 1997) ISBN 1851588051 Other source material

Question: In November 1990, Mary Robinson defeated Brian Lenihan to become the first female President of which country?
Answer: Ireland