Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I appreciate that the Minister is present to deal with this very important matter. Last night we witnessed a harrowing programme which chronicled the bleak tale of the disappeared, the silent witnesses to some of the grimmest and most cynical crimes in that troubled time. Sons, brothers, husbands, fathers and mothers were ruthlessly taken from their families in the dark of night on the orders of self-appointed local warlords. Some were barely old enough to shave before they disappeared into the depths of an IRA conspiracy. The gaping hole the abrupt, shock absence of these men and women left in their families' lives is a legacy with which they still struggle today. RTE and BBC did a valuable public service in producing this documentary which dealt in great detail with these awful murders and devastated families.

Jean McConville, a mother of ten, trying to make ends meet in desperate circumstances in west Belfast, was executed and disappeared on the orders of the Belfast IRA commander. The family unit was shattered and siblings were separated from one another. We have yet to hear the IRA leadership of that time deal in any appropriate way with a response, if there is such a thing when one is dealing with murder. It has very serious questions to deal with arising from this callous murder.

The family of Kevin McKee still linger with a sad regret over a final telephone call from their brother before he went silent forever. The searing testimony of Charlie Armstrong's widow, whose loss is still so raw and so painful to watch even after all the years, is a sharp reminder of the devastating impact these crimes have had on the families of the men and women who were murdered and submerged in a web of IRA lies and propaganda. Mrs. Armstrong's quiet dignity and strength as she visited the grave of her husband last night stood in stark contrast to the weasel words of Deputy Gerry Adams and others, as they even now try to muddy the waters. These victims' disappearance was compounded by the vicious malevolent rumour mill that attempted to cast aspersions on their characters and or to give false hope to bereft families. The IRA still refuses to accept responsibility for the murders and legitimate questions are not answered.

Since its establishment in 1999 in the aftermath of the Good Friday Agreement and enactment following referendums in the North and the South, the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains has been working on the lonely task of securing a just outcome for the disappeared. The remains of Joe Lynskey, Kevin McKee, Columba McVeigh, Seamus Wright, Captain Robert Nairac, Brendan Megraw and Seamus Ruddy are all lying unmarked in the ground somewhere in the Irish countryside. There are people who know where they are buried. Some of them are now in prominent public positions in Irish life. There is a heavy moral obligation on those who know to act on that knowledge. The families deserve to be made whole even at this late stage. The prevarication of the IRA and its fellow travellers in identifying the victims for whom they were responsible is a damning indictment of the moral judgment shown by that organisation. The weight of history is a heavy burden in this country. Shallow graves in desolate bogs, on lonely beaches and down distant country lanes are a testament to that burden. The victims' families are left with that dark legacy. Contrary to what Deputy Gerry Adams and others would now like to claim, everyone in the North does not share responsibility for what happened there. While the IRA organisation, from top to bottom, was intent on destruction, families in Nationalist communities across the North were resisting its campaign of terror, bringing up families and trying to earn a living in peace.

I trust that the Government will continue to give full assistance and every necessary support to the independent commission as it continues its work. I hope all Members of this House will rise to their moral responsibility to help the families, even at this very late stage.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I am very aware of his long-standing interest in it. There is nothing in his contribution with which I disagree. Individuals in Northern Ireland were the victims of terrible atrocities, for which there can be no excuse of any description or any political justification. Over the course of the conflict in Northern Ireland a number of people were murdered and buried secretly by paramilitary organisations, mainly the Provisional IRA. They have become known as the disappeared, as have others on other continents and in other countries who were treated similarly. This was a brutal practice, not alone the commission of kidnap and murder but also the further, profound injustice inflicted on the families of the people who were killed. Those responsible for the murder of the innocents and concealing their remains simply have no moral compass and there can be no moral justification for their conduct. The families, whose raw grief was once again highlighted in last night's television documentary which I watched, have had a peculiarly cruel tragedy visited on them; they not only lost their loved ones to murder but also for many decades did not even know of their fate and had no graveside at which to grieve.

I have met the victims' families and pay tribute to their dignity and fortitude in the face of their suffering. Too many have had false hopes when it was thought that remains might be found, only to discover that the information furnished had proved to be inaccurate. Once again, I extend my deepest sympathy to them on their loss and assure them of my continuing support for their efforts to recover their loved ones. The Taoiseach also met the families in July and assured them of the Government's continued support for them and its commitment to this humanitarian process. Those who were involved in these callous acts of disappearance should be keenly conscious of the abhorrent nature of what they have done. They should also feel the strongest moral obligation to do all they can to try to right the wrong done to the victims and their families.

The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains was established in 1999 by the Irish and British Governments and will continue to be supported by the two Governments. It was one of a key set of actions aimed at addressing the suffering of the victims of violence as a necessary element of reconciliation. In its work the commission is not involved in making moral judgments on those who ordered or participated in such appallingly brutal acts. It is responsible for facilitating the. location of the remains of the disappeared and its sole objective is to return the remains of the victims to their families in order that they can receive a decent burial and the families will have a grave at which to grieve and remember. In this way, the families may, in some measure at least, achieve resolution or closure in regard to the deaths of their loved ones.

The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains has received co-operation from many sources, including from many in the organisations responsible, over the course of its work in locating the victims' remains.

However, as there are still seven victims on the commission's list whose remains have not yet been found, we have to constantly see if more can be done. The commission needs further information to be able to progress its investigations and this is the only resource that is missing. I appeal, therefore, to anybody anywhere who has information that might assist the commission to provide that information, in confidence, so that it can be acted upon. The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains operates a confidential telephone line and post office box and details can be found on its website.Nobody has anything to fear by providing information, and information provided to the commission is guaranteed the strictest confidence and can only be used for the purpose of locating and recovering the victims' remains. The families have endured for long enough. Although some of them have had the remains of their loved ones returned to them, there are others who still wait and who still suffer to this very day. That suffering was clearly apparent in last night's programme. There can be absolutely no excuse for those who have information to withhold it and for the sake of common human decency they should provide that information without delay. Both RTE and the BBC should be congratulated on the programme broadcast last night for yet again detailing the plight of the families, the suffering being endured and the need to ensure missing information can be furnished.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister's very clear statement and he summed up very well the significant grief and anguish felt by so many families. As he noted, the request of these families is very small, and with courage and dignity they have outlined very clearly that they want a final resting place for loved ones where they can lay flowers and say a prayer. We should all recognise that these are simple requests, and people with knowledge of the location of these victims, who were murdered in horrific circumstances, must come forward and give every possible assistance to the commission. Time is definitely on nobody's side.

For what is probably the first time in my 21 years in this House, I am wearing an emblem or badge. It is the badge supporting the families of the disappeared. I was a very close friend and colleague of the first commissioner, Mr. John Wilson, who was a former Tánaiste, and as the Minister, Deputy Shatter, has noted, I am familiar with the work of the commission from its early days. I was appraised in general rather than specific terms and I knew from the word go of the terrible anguish felt by the families and the simple requests made by them when a loved one had been lost in horrific circumstances. They requested the return of the body so they could have some type of closure. That is a bad phrase but they just want a place to lay flowers, say a prayer and have a final resting place for loved ones.

Perhaps we in the House should have a debate to keep this issue in the public mind, and maybe some of the people with relevant knowledge will come forward and assist the commission in its very difficult work. I do not underestimate the difficulty involved but, as I reiterate, time is on nobody's side.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I will briefly join Deputy Smith in making a few comments. Anybody - either outside or inside the House - with any information or influence over those with information should use that information or influence. We and all right-thinking people are at one in our view that ending the suffering of the families who await the remains of loved ones must be a priority. The commission has had the support of the Irish and British Governments since its establishment and will continue to have that support. The officials in my Department who provide the secretariat function maintain almost daily contact with the commission and their counterparts in the Northern Ireland office. The commission's most recent operation was in search of the remains of Columba McVeigh at Bragan Bog in County Monaghan, and it concluded in September 2012, unfortunately without success. However, the commission remains ready to act on any credible new information or evidence it receives with regard to this or any other outstanding cases.

In concluding the debate on this issue, let me emphasise once again the fundamentally humanitarian intent of the two Governments in establishing and supporting the commission. We are all conscious of the social and religious importance attached to the rituals of proper burial of the dead. The families of the disappeared have been denied those rituals and our shared objective must be to address the humanitarian imperative of returning the remains of the victims to their families. No matter what his or her background, anybody who can assist in achieving that aim must do so. We will continue to do whatever we can to provide the commission with every support in its work.