Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Tá brón orm nach raibh mé anseo don chur i láthair. Bhí mé ag cruinniú eile. I apologise for not being hear for the witnesses' presentation. My question is very much in the same vein as those put by Mr. Francie Molloy and Senator Frances Black, namely, what are the witnesses' requests of us?

I also have a few other questions. As a member of this committee and how it impacts on the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, last week we were all in Belfast and we marked the historic promise of the Good Friday Agreement for a changed society and a changed political dynamic and reality. For me, the most glaringly obvious lack of change is manifested in the obstacles still faced by our ex-prisoner population right across the board. I speak as someone who is the son of two ex-prisoners, the grandson of an ex-prisoner, the nephew of a number of ex-prisoners and the neighbour of countless ex-prisoners, and I am very proud of that.

In terms of everything the witnesses have outlined, for me, the obstacles are clearly more political, legislative and societal. I would offer that we need to initiate a conversation on the issues still faced by ex-prisoners in the context of the unimplemented aspects of the Good Friday Agreement, whether it be issues concerning car insurance, adoption, access to travel or the litany of obstacles many ex-prisoners still feel imprisoned in. They are imprisoned in poverty much of the time because they cannot access certain jobs. They are imprisoned in Ireland because they cannot travel. They are imprisoned in poor mental health and emotional well-being because they cannot access the services to which Mr. Michael Culbert referred. In many ways the biggest irony is that it is very similar to the stories that we heard from the victims in WAVE a number of weeks ago. When we compare and contrast those experiences with any number of benevolent funds and preferential services that are geared towards state actors in terms of the conflict, it is like night and day.

There is a conversation to be had within the broader political context, which we need to initiate and lead with respect to outstanding promises of the Good Friday Agreement, but in terms of, perhaps, more nuanced positions or actions by us as a committee, I would keen to tease those out. I appreciate it is very complex. None of this is straightforward or simple, but there is a constituency there. I would add that some people would make the argument, and this is a concern within the ex-prisoner population, that they are just waiting for us all to die off and then it is hoped the problem will go away. If we follow through the logic, however, that we all know that this is a transgenerational experience and problem, given the large constituency, particularly the large republican ex-prisoner constituency, this is going to be an ever-growing problem. We know of 18 year old university students who have been prohibited from going to the United States because they had a parent who had a political conviction. That is a live current problem that, I contest, runs directly in contrast to the sprit and the letter of the Good Friday Agreement. That should, from my perspective, energise the members of this committee greatly. My main question is the same as was asked previously, namely, what we can do to help.