Mr. Colm O'Gorman:

Certainly and I will try to get through them. Deputy O'Sullivan asked about meeting particular ambassadors, and we encourage all members of the committee to raise individual human rights cases when they meet ambassadors of particular countries. We are available and happy to provide any information we can which may assist them and they should please feel free to contact us in this regard.

With regard to corporate accountability, the practices of multinationals and the exploitation of land, we have done a huge amount of work on the clean-up of the Niger Delta with a target for Shell. There is also what happened in Bhopal in India and other major multinationals have been responsible through their business activity for grave violations of human rights. We seek a system of law which holds multinationals to account for the human rights abuses for which they are responsible, wherever they might occur. At EU level this is particularly what we are speaking about.

We have asked the Presidency to open discussions on the need to improve access to an effective remedy for victims of corporate human rights abuse, identifying existing obstacles and the steps that could be taken towards removing them. Such steps should include the facilitation of access to state-based judicial and non-judicial remedies.

The issue of immunity takes me on in some ways to Senator Walsh's comments on Russia. There is nothing like immunity to allow human rights violations to continue unchecked. They become graver and more gratuitous the longer such immunity continues. The EU must do everything it can to address immunity for human rights violations in the conduct of multinationals or external European states.

The ongoing scandal - I use that word advisedly - of the length of time that families spend in direct provision in Ireland is the result of the failure of successive Governments to introduce an effective asylum process. People are perfectly entitled to come to Ireland to seek asylum. They are then entitled to expect a process to be put in place by the State that addresses their claims for asylum in a timely and effective manner and to be treated with dignity and respect while within the State seeking asylum. It is fair to say that the State is falling short in that regard. That families are languishing in direct asylum is a major issue. Children spending their childhoods in direct provision is unacceptable and I agree that something must be done to address this situation as quickly as possible.

Freedom of religion and belief is a core human right and is an area in which we are active, including at EU level. Our work on tackling Islamaphobia and anti-Semitism speaks for itself. Senator Walsh should feel free to contact us regarding the human rights violations experienced by people of the Christian faith in other parts of the world. We would be happy to share our information on individual cases and the work we are doing thereon.

We have lobbied long and hard in Ireland to ensure that Ireland ratifies the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, a groundbreaking international treaty that will cause a massive shift in how we as society deal with the question of disability. It is a profoundly important legal instrument. Ireland has signed it, but we hope that it will be ratified as quickly as possible.

The issue of abusive and personalised commentary in social media was raised. I am familiar with the concept, as I am active in social media. Thankfully, some of us are more equipped to deal with such comments when we see them. It is a matter for national legislators to address. Our concern as regards Internet freedom is that people should, as an extension of their right to freedom of expression, be able to access the kinds of technology that allow them to communicate effectively. For us as a human rights organisation, this in many ways is an issue of freedom of expression and assembly.

I believe that I have covered most of the points.