John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

There has been much hype about this case. A "Panorama" television programme has been broadcast and I understand that a "Spotlight" television programme has been shown five times. It features a figure looking remarkably like Mr. Garland walking through the streets of Moscow, apparently up to no good. If we were to believe these reports and other newspaper reports, Mr. Garland stands accused of attempting to undermine the currency of the United States.

I am disturbed by the comment murmured under his breath by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform as he departed the Chamber. We need more than that because if such a serious figure was involved in such high level criminality, the Garda Síochána would know all about it, as would the Independent Monitoring Commission which published its report yesterday. Despite this, as far as I understand it, the Workers' Party has received a clean bill of health. I have not heard about the Official IRA for many years and yet this man stands accused.

As Deputy Quinn noted, the reason he was arrested in Belfast is because the standard of proof required there for an extradition is of a much lower order than in this jurisdiction. In the wake of the attacks of 11 September 2001, the United States has little time for civil liberties unless it involves one of its own citizens. Presumably that explains why it has not signed up to the International Criminal Court. The presumption of innocence until proven guilty is the corner stone of our legal system. While Mr. Garland may have political views of which the United States, Deputy Quinn, Deputy Carey and I do not approve, that is not the issue. The issue is justice. As Irish parliamentarians and as Europeans we cannot afford to abandon those hard-fought principles of justice for a legal system devised by George W. Bush.

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