Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Margaretta D'Arcy and the late John Arden were long time anti-war campaigners. Their opposition was to the entire concept of war and its terrible consequences for people and not for any nation. For the considerable time I have known her, Margaretta D'Arcy has been involved in anti-war campaigns and, in particular in recent years, the campaign at Shannon Airport. I understand she has been committed to prison for three months for refusing to give an undertaking on what she sees as a matter of principle. However, she is aged 79, frail and she suffers from Parkinson's disease.

Knowing the woman, the sincerity of her beliefs and her frailty, her continuing imprisonment offends human rights and I ask the Minister for Justice and Equality to release her on humanitarian grounds. Her continued detention sends out the wrong signal. She is in prison for, if anything, caring too much for other people and not wanting people to get hurt. As a society, we want to be known for our justice system, which should balance justice with compassion. Many ordinary people would fail to understand why she is in jail while many others who wilfully and knowingly hurt people walk free.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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Last month, I had the privilege along with Deputy Wallace of appearing as a witness on behalf of Margaretta D'Arcy as she defended her case along with Niall Farrell. The case she conducted as a citizen committed to defending Irish neutrality is supported by the overwhelming majority of citizens and, for the service that this women has selflessly given, she finds herself incarcerated, at almost 80 years of age, in Limerick Prison. I would like the Minister's opinion on this national embarrassment. Letters were published in today's edition of The Guardian calling on the British Government to intervene and to bring some rationality to this scenario. I salute the gesture of Mrs. Higgins, the President's wife, who visited her former colleague. That gesture should be reciprocated by the Minister and he might make a trip to the prison.

Towards the end of last year, the United Nations Committee Against Torture asked the Government what it was doing about its use of Shannon Airport. People like Margaretta D'Arcy have led the fight. Every month we come to the House and we ask the Minister and his colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, about the countless number of US aircraft that pass through Shannon Airport.

They are supposed to be unarmed, not carrying explosives or ammunition and not engaged with intelligence gathering but even when aircraft display cannons they are not inspected and are granted permission to continue.

How can the Minister allow a committed peace activist to lie in jail without a single garda being sent to investigate US military aircraft travelling through this State? It is a national scandal. The Minister should be ashamed of himself. If he had an ounce of Margaretta D'Arcy's commitment and humanity, he would direct his State forces to deal with those responsible for violence and murder rather than persecute a diligent and loyal citizen.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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It is deeply ironic that Ministers are expressing concern about events in Ukraine, the Government of which is trying to pass a law to make it a serious offence to engage in peaceful sit down protests at public buildings. This has caused a near revolt. Everybody acknowledges that the actions of the Ukrainian Government, following on from the actions of President Putin's Government in Russia, are actions of a repressive and undemocratic regime and that we must uphold the right to peaceful protest. In this country, however, a 79 year old writer - like the Minister - and activist of conscience who engaged in an act of civil disobedience is languishing in prison even though she is ill with Parkinson's disease. Is that not appalling? Whatever one may think of her views, Margaretta D'Arcy is acting on her conscience on an issue with which a huge number - probably the majority - of people in this country are in agreement, namely, that the airports of a neutral country should not be used to facilitate the CIA programme of illegal torture and kidnap or the transport of military equipment and troops used in the bloody wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. She has a right to protest against that and she should not be imprisoned for doing so. I appeal to the Minister to intervene on humanitarian grounds to direct that Margaretta D'Arcy be released. True to herself, Margaretta has asked us not to worry so much about her but to raise the issue. For the umpteenth time, I ask the Minister to investigate the use of Shannon Airport in the illegal kidnap and torture programme and for the purpose of conducting war.

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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Since 2001 we have facilitated the transport through Shannon of more than 2.5 million US and NATO troops and their munitions and supplies, primarily to engage in illegal wars based on fabricated evidence which wreaked havoc on societies in Iraq and Afghanistan. Hardly a day goes by in which we do not read about deaths in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. We were told these countries were being invaded in order to bring democracy and nation building to them but the bombs dropped on Kabul, Baghdad and Tripoli did not build much. They did not replace what they destroyed and they did not replace the people they killed. Sadly, we have played a part in bringing this about. Margaretta D'Arcy has been put in jail at the age of 79 years for highlighting that war is senseless and stupid. Wars allow a small elite to make a crazy amount of money. The permanent members of the UN Security Council have engaged in a colonial carve-up in order to exploit the planet. This woman is a hero. She has done what this State has lacked the courage to do and undertook great risk to highlight the shameful nature of our efforts to facilitate this destruction and murder. She should be honoured rather than thrown in prison.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputies who have contributed to this debate. The House will appreciate that the courts are, subject to the Constitution and the law, independent in their functions. They are independent of Members of this House and of the Government. In the context of Deputy Ó Cuív's contribution, I note that when his colleague, Deputy Michael McGrath, was asked about this issue and whether the individual concerned should be released, he stated that it was a matter for the Judiciary and that no politician should interfere in such decisions.

What I can say is that the person referred to was convicted at Ennis District Court last month of endangering lives by entering on the runway at Shannon airport in late 2012. She was sentenced to three months imprisonment which was suspended for two years on condition that she enter into a good behaviour bond and stay away from entering any part of Shannon Airport which is not authorised to the public. Having failed to enter the bond, the sentence was activated by the court and the person was committed to Limerick Prison to serve that sentence. As I have already stated, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on the decision of the court whose function it is to apply the law and to arrive at a decision having heard all the evidence in a case. I would add, however, that it is a matter of regret that the person in question did not avail of the opportunity afforded by the judge to enter into a bond and thus avoid the necessity to serve the sentence which the court felt it appropriate to impose.

While I am not going to comment on the specifics of this case, I have to say that encroaching on an airport runway is a very serious and very dangerous act. It potentially places the lives of those who encroach at risk. It also puts the lives of gardaí, airport workers and airplane passengers in danger. It is a highly irresponsible act and cannot be justified by adherence to any cause. This is not a question of someone being deprived of a right to protest. I respect the right of individuals to protest but I expect those people to respect the rights of others.

There has been ongoing protest action around Shannon Airport for a number of years. These protests have resulted in the expenditure of significant additional moneys by An Garda Síochána in policing the protest around the airport. Between 2004 to the end of 2013, additional Garda costs amounting to over €17.3 million have been incurred in connection with the security operation at Shannon Airport. This is money which could have more usefully been used for normal policing work and for the provision of additional Garda equipment but because of the actions of a very small minority in this country, these valuable resources have to be expended on maintaining law and order, ensuring the effective operation of the airport and the safety of passengers, pilots and other airline staff. I remind the House that Shannon Airport is a designated emergency landing airport and there are regular emergency diversions to it.

As regards her imprisonment, I have been informed by the Irish Prison Service that the individual concerned is currently detained in the female section of Limerick Prison and has access to the full range of services there. It has been reported in the media that she suffers from a number of medical conditions. It would not be appropriate for me to comment on this but I assure the House that she has full access to the range of medical services available in Limerick Prison. She was medically assessed on committal to prison and seen by the prison doctor the next day. She has access to a 24-hour nursing service in prison and access to a doctor daily if requested or on referral by the nursing staff. In addition, any hospital appointment she may have scheduled will be facilitated by prison management.

I have been informed by the Irish Prison Service that the duty governor explained the mechanism of temporary release to the individual concerned on her committal to prison. I understand that she has not applied for temporary release and it would not be right for me to make any further comment on that. I should also say, however, that it is my understanding that she remains unwilling to enter into a good behaviour bond. I am sure the House will agree with me in saying that the rule of law must prevail even where it creates difficult circumstances. Nobody is above the rule of law irrespective of their age. I ask those who call for the individual's immediate release whether this individual by future action on her own or accompanied by others again be permitted again to encroach on a runway.

Is she to be ignored and allowed to do so repetitively? If such further encroachment takes place with a resultant loss of life, would any of the Deputies who spoke take responsibility for such an eventuality? Are they prepared to give a free pass to those who so behave and, by so doing, place lives at risk and the law in disrepute?

I do not believe the individual concerned should be presented in this context in heroic guise or that it is in the public interest that she be so depicted. A court decision has been delivered. I am advised it was not appealed. The signing of the bond to keep the peace would result in the individual's immediate release. I am sure that the House will appreciate that, in the circumstances of this particular case, the resolution of the matter rests entirely with the individual concerned. It is something that I expect a majority of people outside this House would readily understand.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I will be brief because I am aware of the time constraints.

I am aware of the constitutional separation between the Judiciary and the Executive and this House, but I have a straight question for the Minister. Could he outline to this House in what circumstances has he the right to release somebody from prison on humanitarian grounds? I can remember clearly a case in which one of his predecessors in a Fine Gael-Labour Party coalition, on humanitarian grounds, let out somebody I knew well who was serving a sentence in prison.

The Minister is over-egging it a little if he states that it costs so many million euro for Shannon Airport to be made secure against a frail 79-year-old woman. The Minister knows why she will not sign the bond. She believes that signing that bond is tantamount to saying that the use of Shannon Airport, in her view, for war purposes, is right. We have often seen how people have supported persons of conscience even if they always did not agree with either their tactics or their view on an issue.

Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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The Minister will be aware that two years ago Ms Mary Kelly had her conviction for damage to a US naval aircraft overturned in the Court of Criminal Appeal because it was deemed to be a defence of lawful excuse if the action she took was designed to protect herself or others from a bigger danger. That, in essence, is what Ms Margaretta D'Arcy has also done. Her stance is a stance against the greater problem of the slaughter in Iraq and the continued use of Shannon Airport to facilitate drones and other military aircraft. It is quite an insult to people in this State for the Minister to talk about enforcing the rule of law, saying it must be upheld in this case, and talk about this almost-80-year-old woman being a danger to lives while there is no such talk from him about the law being upheld in investigating US military aircraft landing in Ireland and no such talk about the endangering of lives that results. There has been no report to the United Nations Committee Against Torture, which asked the Minister to update it on the investigations he has carried out to ensure that our airports are not being used for purposes for which they should not be, because he has not carried out such investigations, yet the Minister has the neck to condemn this woman. We urge him to see sense and the greater good in this scenario.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Quite simply - this is what I believe Margaretta D'Arcy would want to convey to the Minister - the Minister would not have to spend €17 million if the Government stopped facilitating the US military machine at Shannon Airport and stopped facilitating CIA aircraft that are involved in the illegal torture and kidnapping of persons.

Margaretta is acting also on the principle of the Nuremburg judgments, with which the Minister may be familiar, arising out of the trials of Nazi war criminals and the obscenities they inflicted on the Jewish people and other innocent victims of Nazi horror, which stated that citizens of any state were obliged to break the laws of their own state if they believed it was preventing a greater crime. It is precisely on that basis that Margaretta D'Arcy has acted.

Is the Minister really saying there is nothing he can do about an elderly 79-year-old woman languishing in prison on the basis of an act of conscience for doing something similar to what Martin Luther King or Mahatma Gandhi would have done? Do we want to be the type of state that would have imprisoned Martin Luther King or Mahatma Gandhi? We are, as long as Margaretta D'Arcy languishes in prison.

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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There has been much denial about Ireland's role in facilitating the US war machine, but a WikiLeaks revelation from December 2007 showed the US ambassador congratulating the then Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Mr. Dermot Ahern, on his staunch rejection of the Irish Human Rights Commission's recommendation that the Government inspect aircraft suspected to have been involved in rendition flights. Ahern suggested that the US ambassador personally engage with the Fine Gael leadership to explain the United States position on running extraordinary rendition flights through Shannon. There is little doubt.

The Minister seems to think that because Margaretta D'Arcy did something wrong by encroaching on the runway in Shannon she deserves to be in jail for three months, even at 79 years of age. Does she deserve to be in jail more than George Bush junior or Tony Blair, who lied in order to start a war in which more than a million people have died? Is Margaretta D'Arcy's crime greater than theirs? The Minister and I know that they will not be in jail. Should she be in jail before them?

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister has two minutes to conclude.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I note with great interest that although there has been much hyperbole in the responses from Deputies opposite, not a single Deputy addressed the questions that I asked. This has not been used as a opportunity to address the current circumstances, in truth, of the individual concerned. It has been used to make soapbox speeches about issues related to the United States that the Deputies have raised on many occasions in the House.

I want to be clear on the position. This individual was sentenced to three months' imprisonment which was suspended for two years on condition she enter into a good behaviour bond and stay away from entering any part of Shannon Airport which is not authorised to the public. She is free to enter into any part of Shannon Airport that is authorised to the public.

Contrary to the views of Deputy Ó Cuív, she is not required to change her view about any issue. She is not curtailed in the criticism she engaged in. I wonder whether Deputy Ó Cuív, when he was a senior Minister, would have thought it a good idea for members of the general public to wander onto the runways of our major airports whenever it suited them and that no Garda action be taken and they be given a free pass to do so whenever they wished.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister should not twist what was said.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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It seems to me that those who are speaking on her behalf need to clarify what it is that they are advocating.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister should not twist what I said.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Ó Cuív.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Are they saying that a judgment of a court should not be respected?

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister should not twist what I said and should answer the question: what legal right has the Minister to release persons on humanitarian grounds?

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I gave Deputy Ó Cuív the dignity of not interrupting him.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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What legal right has the Minister to release persons on humanitarian grounds?

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Ó Cuív, I am on my feet.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister should stop lecturing me and answer the question.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am sure if Deputy Ó Cuív keeps on shouting, someone in the media might notice-----

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister should answer the question.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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-----but it is not adding anything to this debate.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister should answer the question.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister cannot.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Ó Cuív should resume his seat.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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He cannot and he will not. He enjoys locking up persons of nearly 80 years of age.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister to conclude.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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A sad display from a Deputy who is a former Minister in government and whose own political colleague on his front bench categorically disagrees with the approach he is taking-----

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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If he does, so what?

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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-----and went to the media today to say that he did so.

It seems that those Deputies who are speaking on behalf of the individual concerned need to clarify what it is they are advocating.

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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Humanitarian release. Will the Minister answer the question?

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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He will not answer it.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Are they saying that a judgment of a court should not be respected? Are they saying that an individual should be permitted to continue without hindrance activities that would endanger the lives of others? It seems a straightforward resolution is possible, and it is something that the Deputies present who have raised this issue could urge. It is that the individual concerned give the undertaking that is sought.

That would not mean that she could not continue to express her views, it would simply mean that she could not continue to break the law in circumstances giving rise to the potential to endanger others.

While I deeply regret that any individual of this age should find himself or herself in prison, I find it extraordinary that Deputies would condone the activities of individuals entering on to runways-----

Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister is condoning-----

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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-----endangering the lives of passengers-----

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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-----and endangering their own lives and apparently encouraging that type of activity as some desirable protest. It is extraordinary.

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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It is about the principle-----

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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That concludes the Topical Issue Debate.