The first cross-Border human rights conference takes place in Dublin Castle today and tomorrow. The North's chief human rights commissioner, Prof Brice Dickson, says he is looking forward to the event.
"No doubt the conference - which brings together for the first time the two jurisdictions' human rights commissions as well as their respective equality bodies - will be a great help in raising our profiles. It is so important not to let such events turn into lofty talking-shops, when what we really need to do is to let people know we are here for them and their rights."
The commission's chief executive, Ms Paddy Sloan, agrees. "We don't want the politicians to take over the conference. What we should use the event for is to establish clear guidelines for the co-operation of the four agencies. That doesn't happen by accident but needs a clear structure, a regular cycle of contacts, etc."
There are fears that the conference could be overshadowed by the Government's controversial appointment of Mr William Binchy, a Trinity law lecturer and anti-abortion activist, as one of its human rights commissioners. Only one of the other seven appointees was among the eight front-runners listed by the selection panel chaired by Dr T.K. Whitaker.
While not wishing to comment on individual members of the Southern commission, Prof Dickson finds it difficult to hide his impatience at the delay in making appointments. "If anybody had told me back in July, when the commission was due to be appointed, that it still would not be in place in December, I would have been very surprised. It certainly has delayed any joint activities we could have undertaken by now."
"I think by trying to be especially transparent in their appointment procedure the Irish Government achieved the exact opposite," Ms Sloan adds. "Rather than go through the process of advertising the positions, having people apply, conducting interviews and then appointing people - as we did and as is established in the Paris Principles on the running of human rights organisations - they complicated matters by setting up a special selection panel, whose recommendations they then refused to accept."
In a Northern context - where human rights have traditionally been associated with the civil and political rights of the nationalist community - Ms Sloan adds: "We found the only way to operate neutrally is to adhere to international standards. Once you move away from them and set your own, you are into the realm of political decisions and your position becomes untenable."
The lack of international standards on the issue of abortion has made it a particularly tricky subject, Prof Dickson admits. The anti-abortion lobby has accused the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission of "killing babies" by taking a pro-choice stance, an accusation which he describes as "completely unfair".
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission came into being in March last year under the terms of the Belfast Agreement. Its chief commissioner and nine part-time commissioners have dealt with over 300 case inquiries, studied proposed legislation and reviewed the effectiveness of existing law and practice with regard to human rights. The biggest task facing the commission over the next 12 months is drawing up a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland, which will also be at the core of an All-Ireland Charter of Rights, to be drawn up by the two jurisdictions' joint human rights committee.
Human rights commissions should never forget they were set up to protect ordinary people's rights, Ms Sloan said. "The great challenge is to reach out to the `great unwashed' - the 85 per cent of the population who are not involved in anything."