Mary Robinson
Former President of Ireland and Former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Tuesday, March 15, 2005


Mary Bourke Robinson is the first woman ever to become President of Ireland, and more recently she served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
While a young barrister working in Dublin, Robinson won a number of landmark legal cases, many involving women’s rights. As a member of the Irish Senate, she campaigned to make birth control legal and to decriminalize homosexuality. She currently leads the Ethical Globalization Initiative, which works to promote human rights in the globalization process.