Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)

Does the Minister agree that a host of reputable human rights organisations and individuals have demanded an end to Irish complicity in the United States' illegal rendition programme? Does he agree that those calls should have resulted in the Government taking the necessary steps to ensure the protection of fundamental human rights and justice for victims of rendition, including the gathering of evidence, where available and when the opportunity presented itself, to ensure that a body of evidence would be gathered internationally to make a case against the United States in respect of its dreadful actions by way of extraordinary rendition, which is a misnomer? Does he agree that this State should have taken all steps possible to gather such evidence, including boarding planes used for extraordinary rendition before or after the fact? Even if no such transition of prisoners took place through Irish airports, planes used for this practice did land therein and could have been impounded to allow the international community to take a case against the United States. The Ministers responsible in this area, including the Ministers for Transport, Justice, Equality and Law Reform and Foreign Affairs sat on their hands.

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