Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I am sharing time with Deputy Paul Murphy.

About a week ago the Dáil debated a motion which condemned President Trump's immigration policy whereby he was separating children from parents at the US border. Even Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael joined in and initiated the motion. Looking back, I have to ask if it was really motivated by concern about what was happening to the children and their parents, or if it was just because President Trump had fallen out of favour with the European Union and, therefore, it was an opportune time to condemn him. The same parties have been deadly silent on EU immigration policy whereby children are not being separated from their parents by border guards because they are not even reaching here; rather, they are floating lifeless in the water of the Mediterranean. Anybody who was not moved over the weekend by the pictures of the three babies floating fully dressed in children's clothes, looking as if they were alive, had a heart of stone. They were the latest victims of the migrant crisis in which people are trying desperately to reach Europe and will risk anything to do so. Some 100 people were feared dead on the rubber boat which capsized off the coast of Libya.

Italy has closed its ports to ships that are rescuing migrants. The European Council stated it was determined to prevent a return to the "uncontrolled flows" of 2015 and stem illegal migration. President Macron said we would look for a European solution. That solution is to have regional disembarkation platforms, hopefully in north Africa or elsewhere outside Europe, to stop people from getting here and save the European Union the trouble of even having to deal with these human beings. Europe has a population of 500 million.

In 2018 a total of 42,000 people came, which is actually not a lot. Even in 2015, the figure was 1 million, in the context of an acute crisis. A total of 16,000 migrants have died or gone missing at sea since 2014, yet not once have I heard Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil or any of the other big parties represented in this Dáil condemn the European Union for that policy.

Médecins Sans Frontières asked the European Union to show some basic decency - it used these very frank words - by allowing search and rescue operations to bring people to a place of safety and not return them to Libya. Please excuse me, but I am using the words of Barack Obama. Can we be clear on why Libya is a "shitshow"? It is because of the Clintons and Baraka Obama who took a decision to intervene to try to change the regime in Libya to increase US influence in the Arab world and US economic interests in that oil rich country. Again, I have never heard it being condemned by the Minister of State, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Taoiseach or anybody else. In fact, Hillary Clinton was awarded a doctorate in this city last week for her efforts. It was done in conjunction with our European partners, as Baraka Obama said at the time. There was loss of civilian life and infrastructure on a large scale, as well as the promotion of unaccountable militias, religious fundamentalists and, of course, Islamic State.

I want to take up some of the issues that were raised. It is not the case that no political party has played the race card because individual councillors have been playing it for many years. I will give three examples in Fine Gael. The Limerick councillor Stephen Keary said welfare recipients saw Ireland as the home of hand outs and easy pickings. Councillor Brian Murphy talked about sharia law operating in Ireland and subverting our legal system. Councillor Darren Scully said he would not represent black Africans. These comments are seized on on social media forums and elsewhere and the people in question have not been kicked out of Fine Gael.

The left should not support any imperialist intervention in the region. I have not visited Syria, but I have spoken to Syrian refugees fleeing the barrel bombs and all other weapons used in the region in which Russia is assisting a murderous regime. That is the reality and we should condemn it, as well as western intervention.

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