Monica McWilliams
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Monica McWilliams (b. 28 April 1954) is a Northern Ireland academic and politician. She is Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission [1].
McWilliams is a graduate of Queens University, Belfast and the University of Michigan. She was Professor of Women's Studies and Social Policy at the University of Ulster.
McWilliams was the co-founder of the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition, a political party involved in the Northern Ireland Forum from 1996 to 1998. She was an elected member of the Multi-Party Peace Negotiations and a signatory to the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. She served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly in Northern Ireland for from 1998 to 2003. During the negotiations following the Agreement, she was the Chairperson of the Human Rights Sub-Committee until 2003. She was appointed full-time Chief Commissioner for Human Rights in Northern Ireland in June 2005.
McWilliams is an Associate Researcher with the Institute for Transitional Justice and INCORE, a United Nations Research Centre for the Study of Conflict, at the University of Ulster. She has published two books: Bringing It Out in the Open: Domestic Violence in Northern Ireland (1993) and Taking Domestic Violence Seriously: Issues for the Civil and Criminal Justice System (1996) and numerous articles on the impact of political conflict. Her work has been recognised by the John F Kennedy Leadership and Courage Award and the Frank Cousin’s Peace Award. She has received a Doctor of Humane Letters from Lesley College, Massachusetts and Mount Mary College, Milwaukee.