Background

MENTAL HEALTH AND HUMAN RIGHTS
Mental health is a human rights issue. Human rights provide a framework for bringing about change in Ireland and achieving real improvement in the lives of people who experience mental health difficulties. It also provides a basis for achieving consensus between Government, service providers and service users.

MENTAL ILLNESS – THE NEGLECTED QUARTER
In 2003, Amnesty International Irish section began its campaign on mental health in Ireland with a series of reports, Mental Illness: The Neglected Quarter. These reports outlined some criticisms of the treatment in Ireland of people with mental illness, and measure them against international human rights standards.

LET’S MAKE IT HAPPEN
In January 2006, the Irish Government committed itself to a new blueprint for mental health- A Vision for Change. It promised reform of mental health in Ireland and a person centred approach.
The second phase of our campaign was launched in October 2006, ‘Mental Health: Let’s Make it Happen’, and called for Government action to implement this policy and to address the chronic under-funding in mental health in order for reforms to happen.
As part of this phase we published a policy briefing that set out a blueprint for how A Vision for Change should be implemented.

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