Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak today. One of the most immediate issues facing the European Union is the result of the recent Italian referendum, coming as it does on the back of the Brexit referendum result. We seem to be stumbling and fumbling along, unsure of ourselves. We have seen heavy-handed attempts by EU leaders, powerful people, to threaten our nearest neighbours. They have questioned what the British have done and urged them to revisit the issue. Only now is the seriousness of the situation gradually sinking in but the potential damage that Brexit may do to us has not fully sunk in yet. It has created a climate of uncertainty and added to the sense that the European project itself could be spinning out of control. The referendum was presented to the Italian people as an effort to reform the workings of Government but the people saw it differently. They interpreted the proposition before them as an attempt to increase government power at the expense of the regions and the rights of the ordinary citizen. Like it or not, that is the way people feel about Europe now. They feel that they are being excluded and left on the margins. There is a huge disconnect with the powers that be. We saw that for ourselves with the financial crisis. What did we get from the EU? Nothing but disdain and being told what we should and should not do. The EU allowed the money to be shovelled in here but took no responsibility for the actions of the European banks.

This is a common theme running through much of the so-called debate on Europe at the moment. There is so much mistrust regarding the true agendas of national governments and the direction that Europe is taking that it has changed the political landscape across the Union. We are not immune to this in Ireland and how could we be? We must learn from Brexit. We must learn to find ways to listen to the people and not to dismiss their concerns as mere populism. We can all say that and we have seen that across the globe. If one takes a different view, if one is not on the big merry-go-round of European and US trips, that does not mean one is being a populist and just having a go. Having said that, we must find a way of striking a balance between listening to the people and making difficult but necessary decisions. That is a very delicate and difficult balance to strike but we must try to do so. When people trust their governments, this is more easily achieved. The Italian referendum, the Brexit result and the election of President-elect Donald Trump have shown us that when people do not trust their governments, even good ideas are defeated. When the people lose faith in their governments, then the governments cannot bring the people with them.

The Irish Government is going over and back to European summits. What will the Taoiseach be doing about Ibrahim Halawa who marked his 21st birthday in awful conditions in prison in Egypt? What recognition are we getting from the EU for the work we are doing through our missionaries, NGOs and pioneering people? What recognition are we getting for the tremendous but harrowing work being done by our Navy? I saw a documentary on the work of our Navy in the Mediterranean on Monday night last. The risks being taken by our personnel are spectacular. The documentary highlighted the difficulties they experience when trying to rescue migrants at sea. They must try to keep them calm and assure them that they are there to help, such is the level of fear. The migrants are so desperate that they have left their country on boats that do not even have enough fuel to bring them 50 km, not to mention a four-hour trip. The documentary highlighted the false hope and the abuse of trust by those who put them on those makeshift boats.

I visited a refugee camp myself in Lebanon and know that people will take any risks to get away rather than stay in a situation of hateful persecution. What we are seeing in Syria, with the continual bombardment of Aleppo, is beyond words. No words could even begin to describe the horror of that situation, but Europe has stood idly by. What have we said as an independent country? What attempts have we made to bring this issue to the fore and to ensure respect for the so-called normal rules of war? What is going on in Aleppo is savage.

There has been very little debate on these issues in this House. I have tried to raise the issue of the Middle East and the wipeout of Christianity and other minority Muslim sects from the region. Anyone who does not conform is just being wiped out. I note that Fianna Fáil has tabled a motion on the Yazidis. While I acknowledge that the Yazidis are being persecuted, so too are Christians. I cannot understand Fianna Fáil's unwillingness to include Christians in its motion. Why the cherry-picking? No human being deserves to be treated in such an obnoxious fashion. The Middle East will be destabilised for generations to come. It is horrific to see what is going on in Aleppo and to consider the arms trade, the way the USA is supporting Saudi Arabia and the Russians are continuing with their bombardment. It is the most awful civil war. I know that ISIS must be tackled but surely not this way, with the slaughter of innocents, of children, house by house and on the streets of Aleppo. The people of Aleppo could not leave. They had no chance because to try to leave would have posed an even greater risk.

I welcome the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Katherine Zappone, to the Chamber. I know that she and the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, visited refugee camps in Greece in recent days. Seeing is believing. I was only in a refugee camp once, in Lebanon, but I will never forget the fear and terror in the eyes of children. I will never forget the stories they told. Most were there with nobody only a grandparent, their siblings and parents having been slaughtered or dragged into the conflict.

We are standing idly by. As a so-called neutral country, we are not even having proper discourse and debate on these issues. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Shane Ross is the man with responsibility for the munitions passing through Shannon Airport. We need to be questioning much more what is going through that civilian airport. We do not ask enough questions but simply sign letters. I know that the current Minister does not just do that and I compliment him on that. I have spoken to him about issues like this and I know he takes them seriously. The Cabinet needs to take them more seriously too. We need to know the destinations of all the US military planes and what is on board them. I know that Shannon Airport is in the constituency of the Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Pat Breen, and we all want to see the airport doing well, but not at any cost.

I look forward to hearing from the Ministers for Children and Youth Affairs and Justice and Equality about the situation in the refugee camps. We must thank the NGOs, the peacekeepers and the reporters who risk their lives to report the true horror of what is going on. They are being failed by us when we do not act on that horror, when we do not bat an eyelid at the persecution that is going on.

I referred earlier to the wiping out of Christians and other sects.

Under the dictators people had freedom to practice their religion with impunity. There was some sense of normality in the region but united coalition forces have bombed the hell out of the place and what is there now? Nothing but unadulterated bedlam, war and terror regimes. It is a far more unstable, dangerous and troubling place for future generations than has been the case for decades. I am not condoning dictatorships but people had some sense that they were able to go about their lives, cherish whatever faith they believed in and create some semblance of normality for their children, but now there is unadulterated chaos. I am disappointed we have not had any meaningful debates on that in the House. I am disappointed with Fianna Fáil also regarding its difficulty in including Christians in its forthcoming motion. I do not understand the party's difficulty in that regard.

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