Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte mór roimh an rún seo. Níl Ibrahim Halawa ach 20 bliain d'aois. Tá sé faoi ghlas anois ar feadh trí bliana. Tá sé sin thar a bheith mí-cheart agus caithfimid go léir brú níos láidre a chur ar Rialtas na hÉigipte as seo amach. Ibrahim was only 17 when he was arrested, a child, and he has spent the past 1,054 days incarcerated in a filthy and over-populated Egyptian jail. He was not charged for a year after his arrest and is now part of a sham mass trial, with no hope of ever receiving fair treatment in sentencing. His trial has been postponed an incredible 14 times. He has also detailed the ill-treatment and torture he has faced, as well as what other prisoners have been subjected to. It is despicable.

This Government’s strategy to date, although very well intended, in attempting to secure his release has clearly been unsuccessful. I am not saying the Government has done nothing for Ibrahim and we know the amount of consular visits he has received, as well as interventions by the Minister and the Taoiseach. The quiet diplomatic approach and the tactic of waiting for a verdict before applying for a presidential decree has failed Ibrahim and his family. I welcome the indications today that the Government will support an application for a presidential decree 140 on Ibrahim's behalf.

We are reliably informed this decree has always been available to the Irish Government pre-sentencing, despite the Government saying the opposite. The Sinn Féin MEP, Ms Lynn Boylan, contacted the Australian journalist, Mr. Peter Greste, who was released under the presidential decree, and his legal team. It was explained to Deputies, Senators and the media that the presidential decree was available pre-sentencing and that is how Mr. Greste was released. A successful application would allow Ibrahim to return to Ireland before a final ruling has been made in his case, and this is used in cases where a deportation or extradition would serve the "higher interest" of the Egyptian state.

At Ibrahim’s most recent trial the judge decided to release two defendants for no reason and, more worryingly, three of the 493 defendants in the trial have died since the last hearing. This demonstrates how urgent it is for the Government to act. There is a window of opportunity between now and 2 October for maximum diplomatic pressure from an Taoiseach, an t-Aire, Deputy Flanagan and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to be exerted on President el-Sisi. Ms Boylan, MEP, has visited Ibrahim in prison and detailed the devastating impact of Ibrahim’s incarceration. His sisters, in a very articulate manner, have outlined the difficulties in the plight he is enduring. Ms Boylan, MEP, last visited him 11 months ago so I can only imagine that all of this has significantly worsened.

The European Parliament, on the initiative of Ms Boylan, MEP, passed a motion calling for Ibrahim’s release by 566 votes to 11. I very much welcome today's motion calling for his release and for the Government to make an application for the presidential decree. I hope he will be home with his family and friends soon. Sinn Féin will continue to work with others to highlight this case and to press the Government to do all it can to ensure that Ibrahim is returned to Ireland. We extend continued solidarity to family. The Government must act assertively to stand up for human rights and ensure our fellow citizen is urgently returned to Ireland.

As one of the few people here who was incarcerated at Long Kesh and the H-blocks, I know none of the conditions I endured, apart from the protest leading to the hunger strikes, matched what I have been told this young man is being put through. We must put an end to it or at least ensure we do everything possible to put an end to it.

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