Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

I thank Deputies for the support they have expressed for the motion which I hope will be adopted by the House without debate at the end of this discussion. It is right that there is accountability in Parliament for what happens on our streets. It is right that a Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform should be politically accountable to his or her colleagues in Dáil Éireann because that is what the Constitution envisages. If something goes wrong, it is right that the Minister should accept or reject this as he or she sees fit. It is not right, however, to say the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform of the day makes hands-on decisions, or decisions in principle, on issues on which the professional judgment of policemen is surely preferable in most cases to the political judgment of elected Ministers. Such a suggestion is factually groundless. Under our system, the Garda Síochána is given operational independence, subject under the new Act to the capacity of the Minister to make directions which are matters of public record in any particular case. The Garda Commissioner will this summer become the force's Accounting Officer and the financial controller of its annual voted resources. It is correct, when decisions are being taken on the manner in which a particular demonstration, march, parade or assembly should be policed, that the Garda should be given the discretion that reflects the professional judgment of its members.

I do not doubt that lessons will be learned from what happened last Saturday. I do not suggest everything was perfect. As I said, if there is a riot, it is obviously due in one sense to an absence of knowledge or sufficient numbers on the ground to deal with it. That is true, by definition. That is the view in retrospect, but the view in prospect relates to what it was reasonable to do on the day in question. That is the view we have to take in respect of all these matters. We need to consider what it was reasonable for gardaí to do. For example, did they depart from a reasonable standard in the circumstances? On the basis of the material provided in the preliminary report — it is not a final report — I have made available to Members, the Garda acted carefully and with a good deal of forethought. It did not believe violence of the kind that took place was a realistic possibility. Anyone who doubts this is suggesting the Garda took a chance — that it carelessly exposed its members to dangers in a manner that was unprofessional and did not benefit from advance thought.

I ask Deputies to examine the material I have furnished to them. We need to consider the plans put in place. I was asked whether St. John's Ambulance was involved in the preparations for the demonstration. An elaborate hospital plan was put together in case anything went wrong. A representative of the Health Service Executive was present in the control room. Health authorities and local authorities were consulted about anything that could go wrong. Talks were held with all political parties which, in the opinion of the Garda, were likely to mount any kind of counter-demonstration. As Deputy Joe Higgins said, people have the right to hold counter-demonstrations as long as they do so peacefully. The Garda received full co-operation from the parties with which it engaged prior to the demonstration, with the exception of Republican Sinn Féin which I have condemned for its failure to co-operate. It is regrettable that it decided, on the basis of its contempt for the State and its institutions, including the Garda, that it would not indicate the nature of the protest it was planning.

I would like to return to a fundamental point. What happened outside Leinster House on Saturday was an exercise of the constitutional rights and liberties which the State guarantees to all. We might not like the message of those who were demonstrating on Saturday — some of us may be very strongly opposed to it. Some of us may be very strongly of the view that there was an absence of good faith on the part of some of them in respect of what they had to say or how they had to say it. However, that is not the test that applies in a constitutional liberal republic to whether someone should or should not be allowed to protest on our streets. We must be willing to listen to voices and allow parades by people with whom we radically disagree. Those who assaulted gardaí never got to assault the objects of their hatred and sectarian bitterness. They only came across the gardaí in front of them. That they never laid a finger on the demonstrators is due to the professionalism and courage of the Garda Síochána and the wise decisions made by Garda management on the day. In defending the rights of the persons concerned to come to Dublin the Garda Síochána was upholding the Constitution. What was done was not republican in any shape or form. I was interested to hear this point echoed by Deputies Crowe and Ó Snodaigh. What was done attacked the very basis of republicanism. To carry a tricolour and, at the same time, attack a garda defending the right of fellow citizens to express their point of view is despicable, cowardly and yellow. It turns the stomach of every person who rightly claims to be a republican.

I thank the House for giving me the opportunity to be accountable this evening. Lessons will be learned by the Garda Síochána. The proposal was made that I should establish an independent group to look into the events, but Garda management has plenty of material to make its own inquiries and learn the lessons involved. We do not need an outside agency to do this, but will soon have an inspectorate. It will be open to the Minister of the day to ask it to look at whether professional standards were or were not maintained by the Garda in specific cases. In the meantime, having spoken to the Commissioner and the assistant commissioners responsible, I am sure they acted in good faith with the interests of the Constitution at heart. We should not judge them harshly with the aid of retrospection. On the day they did their duty in unexpectedly violent circumstances and upheld the best traditions of the Garda Síochána. Everyone from the assistant commissioner to trainee gardaí with blue bands on their epaulettes — I noticed a few of them in the photographs — did the State proud last Saturday.

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