Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

One of the proudest moments I have had as a Member of the House was when I took part in a joint Oireachtas visit to Egypt six years ago to visit Ibrahim Halawa when he was in prison outside Cairo. I do not think anyone in the Chamber was on the delegation. It was one of the most important, interesting and engaging events I have taken part in. I am very familiar with what the Deputy has said in terms of freedom in Egypt for such prisoners and the need to think of them at this time. One measure we have progressed recently as a Government is directly funding a UN special rapporteur for environmentalists who face persecution or state oppression in whatever form.

I am going by memory, but I think it was Austria and ourselves who came together specifically to finance and support front-line defenders to be able to act on behalf of environmentalists who are imprisoned or under threat from whatever regime. That international office has just been established following the provision of funding from the Government. I had the pleasure of meeting its chief executive in Government Buildings in recent weeks. That is the best approach to take, between what we do in the UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, and through the international legal mechanisms open to us: to stand up for the rights of those who may be persecuted for what they believe in, for their identity or gender, or for anything else we see as being in contravention of the UN Charter of Human Rights.

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