Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I thank Senators for their contributions and I am particularly grateful for the contributions from the two Senators from County Clare, not least because one of the contributors, Senator Daly, is a former Cabinet member. He set out roundly and fairly the position on Shannon and there is no requirement for me to say anything further, other than that Shannon Airport will continue to remain open for business and open to US military traffic.

On the issue of transport of prisoners, the United States recently reassured us that prisoners are not transported through Shannon Airport. The suggestion that prisoners going to or from Guantanamo Bay are transiting through Shannon is untrue. It is important we state that because the international media has repeated that rumour and it is not true.

As many Government spokespersons and Members of this House stated at the outbreak of hostilities in Iraq, the Government has not changed its policy on Shannon Airport in 40 years. Sometimes one is criticised for not changing policy for 40 years but the policy on Shannon is clear and has been continued by many Governments of different ideological complexions. We facilitate the passage of our friends from America through Shannon in military, commercial or civilian aircraft and there is no difficulty with that. It would not be wise to stop it. Germany and France were foremost opponents of the war in Iraq but they allowed flights through their airspace and airports. I thank the Senators from County Clare for their positive and helpful contributions on that matter.

Senator Bradford opened this debate by discussing the threat of Islamic fundamentalism, and although other Senators differed and argued with him he is correct because it does pose a significant global challenge and threat. I had the occasion to visit the Darfur region in Sudan recently and one need only examine the situation there to see the effect of Islamic fundamentalism. The leading ideological and spiritual exponent of Islamic fundamentalism, Hassan al-Turabi, is under house arrest because he convinced the Government he led during the 1990s to host Osama bin Laden. We can all see the enormous consequences of that action for the Sudan, the Middle East and Iraq. Deputy Bradford encountered some hostility when he made that statement but he is correct and there is no point in pretending otherwise.

Islamic fundamentalism also poses a threat and a challenge to many progressive Arab states and, in desperation, some have a process of prosecution and execution on conviction of fundamentalists. I do not agree with that. It causes a serious problem in the world in which we live.

I admired the pacifism of Senator Lydon's contribution and Senator Norris referred to Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib prison. As the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs with responsibility for overseas development and human rights I reassure the House that I have raised these issues. The Government's position on Guantanamo Bay has been consistent, namely, that the Geneva Convention entitlements should be accorded to prisoners held there. The Government has expressed this in every international forum at which Ireland has been represented.

We have seen graphic images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib thanks to a particular female soldier who took photographs and the Taoiseach has made clear to President Bush our discomfort and annoyance at what is taking place. On the many occasions they have met, the Taoiseach has introduced the issue to their discussions and the position of the Government is clear where there is an abuse of human rights. In my capacity as Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs with responsibility for overseas development and human rights I have had discussions with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Dr. Kellenberger, in recent months.

Senator Norris and other speakers raised the matter of ghost detention centres, some of which are thought to be in Jordan, Afghanistan and Syria. I have expressed grave concern at these centres, which are allegedly used for robust interrogation or torture. Although I raised the matter with Dr. Kellenberger, many of the discussions with the International Committee of the Red Cross are confidential, as is proper. Dr.Kellenberger had strong discussions with members of the US Administration, including the President, Paul Wolfowitz and Dick Cheney and informs me there have been positive developments on Guantanamo Bay. The International Committee of the Red Cross is the only international organisation that can get access to these facilities and it does so on the basis of confidentiality. Only on rare occasions does it enter the public sphere, unlike other NGOs. It honours and respects confidentiality in return for being granted access. Through my discussions in Geneva I am told the situation has improved somewhat and that the Red Cross is happy with the levels of co-operation and assistance received from the United States. That is of some reassurance on the matter, although it is not enough.

Senator Minihan spoke of UN deployment in Iraq and although this sounds great the logistics of getting such a force must be examined. People should be aware that the US force currently in Iraq is a UN-mandated one. In a real sense it is not the same force that was there until recently. The UN mandate extends to the end of this year even though the force is not under the control of the UN. The US troops are in Iraq at the invitation of the Iraqi Government, so it is a matter for that Government to decide whether the troops should be replaced by a UN force. It is questionable whether the UN could put together a force of sufficient size and magnitude to control a place like Iraq. This is neither practical nor possible; the UN only becomes involved if peacekeeping is needed. From the accounts of many Senators here and from the international media, robust enforcement is needed rather than peacekeeping.

Senator Tuffy referred to election monitoring. Ireland is very active in funding election monitoring on a proactive basis and my Department funds this work. At the moment we have monitors in Lebanon and Ethiopia, and we have monitored elections in Mozambique in the past. Members are welcome to apply to monitor elections. We want to be more proactive in that area but we could not go to Iraq because there were no volunteers. It was too dangerous to monitor the elections there. At EU level we contributed by helping the electoral commission to conduct elections. That took place at a central level as it was far too dangerous to entertain the idea of people being active in the field. The jury is out on how reliable the election was but it succeeded in restoring some semblance of democracy.

In conclusion I thank Senators Mansergh and McHugh for their contribution. I point out to Senator McHugh, a new, young Senator, that George Bush is not a man of low intelligence.