Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Anti-Austerity Alliance) | Oireachtas source

There has been much focus on the rights of the Commissioner and why she should not have to step aside while this investigation takes place. Due process and in the interests of justice were terms used by the Minister earlier today. The reason for the decision to not ask the Commissioner to stand aside is that it would open up the whole appalling vista of the second Garda Commissioner in a row being put in the dock, effectively, for corruption. Clearly, corruption goes right to the top in An Garda Síochána. I would have thought that the Garda Commissioner remaining in her place would have a potential chilling effect on others who might want to testify to the commission of investigation. I do not believe this is just about seeking another head to roll. A head was rolled already with the previous Garda Commissioner. Nor is it about putting a shiny new head onto a diseased body, because there is definitely something rotten in the state of the Garda. As long as we have a Garda force that primarily and ultimately defends the status quoand the establishment, it will never be truly democratic and accountable.

The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC, was set up in the recent years supposedly to tackle these issues. GSOC testified to the Committee on Justice and Equality last summer that it was taking 14 months on average to pursue any investigation against individual gardaí because of stalling by various members of An Garda Síochána. GSOC has said that it happens not infrequently. It happens quite frequently. What are GSOC's powers? Its findings can be rejected and the sanctions it recommends can be overturned and overruled.

One of the key aspects exposed in the terms of reference for the commission of investigation is the role of the media and the very close links and connections the media has with the Garda.

Essentially, what we are seeing is the media, as a propaganda arm of the Garda, having a role in manufacturing consent in society. One of the terms of reference relates to the allegation that the Commissioner might have orchestrated the leaking to RTE of information before the publication of the O'Higgins report to downgrade the reputation of Sergeant McCabe. There are crime journalists virtually embedded in An Garda Síochána. They live off leaks and try to call their work journalism. Crime journalists such as Paul Reynolds and Paul Williams just spend their day reporting exactly what is passed over to them by the Garda.

Let us not forget the media's faithful reporting during the anti-water-charges campaign, for example. It was reported that there were bomb threats against a Minister and that a bullet was sent to a Minister of State in the post. This proved to be utterly fake news concerning an individual who had mental health issues, and it had nothing to do with the water charges issue. There was a claim that 300 gardaí been assaulted during anti-water-charges protests when, in fact, the figure covered incidents for an entire year and had nothing to do with those protests. The media coverage of the protest in Jobstown is another case in point. The Taoiseach used the word "kidnap" in respect of the events and the media subsequently started to use that term. The charge against protesters then turned out to be one of false imprisonment rather than a breach of public order. It was a much more serious charge.

The Garda has been used to protect and defend the status quoin the interest of the 1%, as the Occupy movement calls those concerned. This is evidenced particularly at times in history when consciousness is awoken and when struggle takes place. It was very evident during the Shell to Sea campaign, and there was a concerted campaign in this regard against the anti-water charges movement. The anti-water charges movement was one of the biggest social and protest movements in this country in a generation.

There are currently protests within the Garda itself. Threats are being issued by the Government and the hierarchy of the Garda against gardaí who are seeking a right to organise, strike and gain access to the Labour Court and State machinery to advance their claims regarding work conditions and pay. They have won in the case in question. It says it all that gardaí are legally barred from striking. Surely it would increase accountability if gardaí began to use the State machinery and began to see themselves more as part of the workforce and the community. There is a concerted campaign to ensure they do not. It is a little ironic, therefore, if individual Commissioners are being defended while threatening gardaí about their right to strike.

It is essential that this matter be fully investigated. Obviously, the Commissioner has to step aside. That would be the norm. It seems the Minister is more interested in how it would look for An Garda Síochána to have a Commissioner step aside than in fully and properly investigating these events. A person can be investigated without any guilt attaching to them. That is the norm and it would be made clear at every turn. One is innocent until proven guilty. The Commissioner stepping aside could not be taken to indicate otherwise.

The issue of the commission of investigation has drawn attention to an especially dangerous and incestuous relationship between the media and considerable elements within the Garda. It is very dangerous for the rest of society and can have significant repercussions. Ultimately, what we need is a police force that is democratic and accountable. GSOC is clearly not enough. In communities, there should be committees of people which interact with the Garda, comment and have an influence on the location of resources and on how the Garda interacts with the community, local workforce, etc. That is very far from being the case here.

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