Irish National Caucus Meets with Staff of Helsinki Commission   

Posted By: July 24, 2019

 

                                Continuing  a long tradition   
 Fr. Sean Mc Manus and Alex T. Johnson. The wall- photo,  between the two of them, is that of  Commission Chairman, Congressman Alcee L. Hastings.

CAPITOL HILL. Wednesday, July 24, 2019— For many years the keyway the Northern Ireland issue

has been kept before the United States Congress is through Congressional Hearings, which were hard fought for to bring about. But since 1995,  such Hearings have been held almost every year: before the full House Foreign Affairs Committee; before the House Subcommittee on Human Rights; and before the Helsinki Commission(also known as The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe).
The  Commission, “is an independent U.S. Government agency created in 1976 to monitor and encourage compliance with the Helsinki Final Act and other OSCE commitments… Promoting basic human rights and fundamental freedoms, along with other humanitarian concerns, has been the cornerstone of the Commission’s work and remains central to its mandate.” (Commission’s website).
The Irish National Caucus has worked closely over the years with the Helsinki Commission. And on Wednesday, July 24 Caucus leaders, Fr. Sean McManus and Barbara Flaherty, met with the Commission’s chief of staff, Alex T. Johnson and  Paul Massaro, Policy Advisor.
                                                 Fr. Mc Manus, Alex T. Johnson and Paul Massaro.
Fr. McManus said:” We are very grateful for the time and courtesy extended to us in discussing the Northern Ireland issue. The Commission has a highly professional, expert and caring staff. It is reassuring to know that despite the other many pressing issues, the Northern Ireland issue is still very much in focus. We deeply appreciate that.”
The Chairman of the Helsinki Commission, Congressman Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL) recently became a Congressional Friend of the Irish National Caucus.