Colm Brophy (Dublin South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. Unfortunately, the Minister, Deputy Coveney, is unable to be present due to previous commitments and has asked me to respond to the Deputy.

The siege of Jadotville was a prominent event that occurred during Ireland's peacekeeping mission in Congo in September 1961, as the Deputy outlined. A Company 35th Infantry Battalion took responsibility for the UN post at Jadotville on 3 September 1961. On 9 September, a large force of Katangese Gendarmerie surrounded them and, early on the morning of 13 September, A Company came under attack. From 13 to 17 September, they endured an almost continuous attack. They were taken into captivity on 17 September and remained in captivity until 25 October 1961.

With regard to the men of A Company 35th Infantry Battalion, the issue of the award of medals was addressed in 1962 and again in 1965. A properly constituted medals board considered the various cases presented. The board did not award any medals whose citation mentioned Jadotville. The then Chief of Staff considered the decision of the board and was satisfied with the findings. Subsequently, the question was raised in a letter to the newly appointed Chief of Staff. He forwarded the letter to the original medals board and asked that it reconvene and review its decision. The board indicated that the issues raised had received due consideration and it was not prepared to alter its findings.

A review was conducted in 2004 by military officers for the purpose of a broader examination of the Jadotville case. This board recommended that the events of Jadotville and the contribution of the 35th Infantry Battalion be given recognition. In this context, a number of measures have taken place to honour and commemorate the events at Jadotville and the very significant contribution of A Company and the 35th Infantry Battalion as a whole to the UN peace-support mission in the Congo. Recognition of their contribution over the years includes a presentation of scrolls to A Company in 2006 and portraits of Lieutenant Colonel McNamee, 35th Battalion Commander, and Commandant Quinlan, Company Commander, A Company, were commissioned in 2006. In July 2010, the 50th anniversary of the first deployment to the Congo, there was commemoration at a highly publicised and well-attended event in Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel. A nominal roll of A Company, printed in copper, was affixed to the monument in Custume Barracks and was unveiled as part of the 50th anniversary of the Jadotville affair in September 2011. On the occasion of the 55th anniversary of the siege of Jadotville, a unit citation to honour the collective actions and bravery of the men of A Company was issued. This was the first time a unit citation was awarded within the Defence Forces.

Furthermore, on 13 June 2017, the Government committed, as an exceptional step, to awarding a medal known as "An Bonn Jadotville", or the Jadotville medal, to each member of A Company 35th Infantry Battalion, and to the family representatives of deceased members to give full and due recognition in honour of their courageous actions at the siege of Jadotville. This specially commissioned medal was procured to fully recognise and honour their courageous actions during the siege. The words inscribed on the medal, "cosaint chalma" and "misneach", meaning "valiant defence" and "courage", were carefully chosen to pay tribute to the courageous men of A Company.

With regard to inquiries about additional medals, the award of distinguished service medals and military medals for gallantry are provided for in Defence Forces Regulation A9. This regulation sets out the criteria for such medals. It is important that, in order to maintain the prestige of such medals, the criteria be adhered to strictly. The introduction of any change to the regulations or the criteria for the award of distinguished service medals and military medals for gallantry is not a straightforward matter, and there are many associated complexities. Robust consideration must be given to any potential unintended consequences arising, such as those associated with maintaining the integrity of the award-of-medals system and the implications for previous decisions of properly constituted military medals boards.

The availability of documentary evidence and official records also represents a challenge in this case. It has been previously indicated that any additional documentation, information or evidence to support the request to award medals will be considered. At this juncture, with no new information having come to light, there would not be a cause for the matter to be re-examined. Notwithstanding this, the issue is receiving further consideration. The Chief of Staff is currently considering the matter in the context of the award of medals and the possible implications for the integrity of the award-of-medals system. It should be noted that the Secretary General of the Department of Defence is meeting retired Commandant Leo Quinlan shortly to discuss these matters and has requested that if he has any new information on the matter, he should submit it in advance of the meeting or bring it with him so it may be considered further.

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