Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This goes back to an earlier discussion in terms of raising the question of where is the EU's collective voice and the condemnation of the violence, the state repression, the attack on polling stations, the attack on voters and the jailing of politicians and civil society activists. Does this not concern Ireland and the EU? Where is the talk of sanctions? I listened to what the Tánaiste stated in the context of these matters being before the courts. That approach is interesting in view of the fact we are celebrating Ireland's independence, when many of the Irish leaders were in prison. The people who are in jail believe in democracy and are non-violent but the Spanish response has been repression and the closing down of debate and the media. The use of violence has come from the state, not from those who are jail. I accept that it is before the courts but Ireland and the EU need to do more in this regard. Yes, we are concerned about what is happening in Poland and Hungary, but we should also be concerned about what is happening in Spain.

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