Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

120. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence if she will examine extending the EU victims directive (details supplied) to cases that are prosecuted by the military police or the Director of Military Prosecutions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54260/26]

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

When is the victims of crime Act 2017 going to apply the Army? The Women of Honour have pushed for change so that if there is abuse within the Army there will, we hope, be mechanisms to deal with that, but what about women who are abused by Army personnel who are not in the Army? The Minister knows of this case and I am not going to go into any names or details but it shines a light on how we have a situation where a woman who was abused by an Army officer - and potentially another woman as well - has not been able since 2022 to get information on her case. Nothing is being done by the secretive military tribunals that are operating in the Army.

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this. I am aware that she has been engaging on this matter and has been trying to make progress. That is certainly something I want to see happen as well.

This was looked at before, so there had been engagement previously when the Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Act 2017 was brought forward. At that time, a decision was taken for various reasons that it did not extend to offences under military law and so it would not be possible to include in the legislation at the time. While it may not be the same, since then the Defence Forces, though they are excluded from this, have been very clear that where appropriate they adhere to the principles of the Act within the military justice system and this is reflected in the Defence Forces victim's handbook. In saying that, because of a number of different meetings and engagement I have had, I have asked my officials to look at this again, so there are deliberations taking place. As part of this process, the military authorities have recently provided advice on the matter. That advice is under consideration. I would like to see them included in this, quite frankly, so while a decision was taken for different legal reasons previously, I have asked for that to be looked at again. In particular, there are a number of different things. There needs to be not a greater level of oversight but a greater ability to hold certain structures accountable and to ensure that where our Defence Forces and military personnel are independent, at the same time there is very clear process where I as the Minister, together with the Department, have a role or function in ensuring there is that significant level of accountability. The work of the external oversight body is also really important here.

We spoke about the Women of Honour earlier. We have heard some of the absolutely atrocious accounts from women who have been abused doing their duty and in their job and it is absolutely essential the workplace is one where women feel safe and all personnel feel safe. That is why the work of the external oversight body is important. It is important also that the Defence Forces are working with that body, as I know they are.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I have very little time left, but I want to put on record that the woman in question was abused by an Army officer using military equipment and surveillance technology, which is extremely scary.

She made a complaint, which has never been pursued. She found out that a court martial was taking place but it was about smaller charges that were nothing to do with the woman or the other woman either. The feeling of the victim was that this was being facilitated, like an organised pay off of this predator. This may not be true but that was her feeling. Is this officer retired? Is he eligible to retire? Does he have a clean record? Does he have a pension? Will we end up seeing him working in Leinster House? The victim's belief is that the military prosecutor has evidence of a very dangerous man but for some reason, the Army does not seem to be concerned because it has not prosecuted him on those charges. Why would the Army not want to prosecute somebody?

Are we at war or something? Why is it so secretive? Why does the Minister have no jurisdiction over what is going on in the Army? I see a letter arrived a day before this question was due in which the Minister says she has no role here. This is just outrageous.

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

From my previous answer, what I want to ensure is that there is a level of oversight and jurisdiction, where there needs to be. At the moment, I am not satisfied that is the case. I will not go into details on the individual in question or any individuals. I have relayed that there are certain things I cannot do at the moment because of how things stand. I am keen to make changes so that there is an appropriate level of oversight. I would again stress that a lot of people in the Defence Forces are very keen to make sure that it is an environment in which people feel safe. I believe it is but where issues arise there are mechanisms in place to support and assist people. The Value Our People survey that was done recently highlights a number of significant challenges that still exist but importantly also where improvements have been made and where there is more work to do. This Value Our People survey will be carried out on a continuous basis so that we can assess what is changing within the Defence Forces, how people are feeling, what challenges are still there and how we can improve. With Patricia King and others through the external oversight body and the work of the Defence Forces themselves, a lot can and will be done in the time ahead.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

This man said of one woman that he would attach her to a concrete block. He said of another that he would set fire to her. Should this person be getting a pay off from the Army? No, of course, he should not. He should have been put on trial. We have to end a situation where these military prosecutions are secret and where the Minister for Defence does not even have the right to intervene. In a letter to the victim, the Minister said that such matters were internal to the Defence Forces and that she had no statutory role and she was considering what options she had. I trust the Minister will look into this, because I know she has an interest in gender-based violence from her previous role. She is the Minister who can do this and can apply the victims' directive. This officer was involved in a GoFundMe campaign, where rapists' names were used as a joke by the various men who contributed to it. I do not think rape is funny and the Army should not either. That GoFundMe campaign was left up for a long time. Why is the Army a law unto itself in relation to gender-based violence? We know it will deal with soldiers but when women are abused the Army has authority over people. It has uniforms, power, weaponry and surveillance to abuse women. Women outside the Army should be protected from people in the Army and should have the same rights as any other woman.

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Once the GoFundMe campaign the Deputy mentioned was brought to the Army's attention it was taken down immediately. However, the very fact that it was up, or as the Deputy said, the content in it, was completely inappropriate. We need to continue to focus on a number of things. Legislative change is required so that there is oversight where it is needed. I am looking at that at the moment, not just in terms of the victims' charter but also in other ways. The external oversight body, which was only established in April 2023, is working with the Defence Forces to make changes where needed. I regularly meet the chair, the chief of the Defence Forces and others specifically on their work.

As we know, the tribunal is under way at the moment. While I anticipate there will be recommendations from the tribunal, we are already starting to work on some of those in terms of complaints' procedures and in terms of mechanisms that had not been functioning appropriately in the past and how we improve them. I am trying to move ahead and not just wait for any recommendation. We are actually working on them now. I appreciate that it is a very difficult time for a lot of people. At the same time, we need to make sure we are responding to this and putting in place the appropriate mechanisms.