Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I am disappointed that the Government has seen fit to table an amendment to the motion in the name of Senator Norris and his colleagues as the wording of the motion is very balanced. More importantly, its unanimous approval by the House would give us a moral standpoint as to our position on the conduct of the Iraqi war.

There were quite a number of debates in the House during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq and since then on the subject of the politics of the war, the politics of the invasion, its purpose and what would flow from it. Many of us differed in that broad debate but the House should now be in a position to fully unite behind this motion and its absolute and proper condemnation of the use of chemical weapons and our revulsion at the practice of torture in Iraq.

I was interested to hear Senator Norris quote former President Jimmy Carter to whom I have often referred. It is commonly agreed that he is without doubt the outstanding ex-President of the United States. Since he ceased being President in 1980 he has done outstanding humanitarian work. I read his recent comments not just on the current situation in Iraq but on the broader state of current American political and military thinking. He paints a very depressing and worrying picture as to where America stands on a broad range of issues.

When people speak of President Bush, they often refer to his apparent strong moral convictions which I do not deny he holds. However, former President Carter also held and holds very strong moral convictions. His autobiography called Keeping Faith is more a diary of his four years in office. It shows the lengths to which he would always go to ensure that a political decision was underpinned by clear, moral thinking. Coming from that background of strong personal morality, he has serious concerns about what America is doing not just in Iraq but in other parts of the world. We should give serious consideration to his views.

The use of chemical weapons is indefensible. It is the ultimate irony that one of the supposed purposes of the invasion of Iraq and the toppling of Saddam Hussein was to ensure that chemical weapons would not be used against Americans and other people. However, chemical weapons or chemical agents, or whatever the correct scientific title is, are now being used.

The use of white phosphorus is a chilling and horrific way of conducting warfare. Senators Norris and Henry have outlined in graphic detail the physical impact of that weapon or chemical agent. The House cannot but support what the Senators have said. Both this House and the Government must be very strong in condemning its use and make strong representations directly to the United States authorities to express our opposition to this activity. The issue should also be raised at European and United Nations levels.

We must be equally strong on the issue of torture. Even the strongest opponents of the war in Iraq would have conceded the widespread use of torture under the regime of Saddam Hussein but it is immoral to replace one regime of terror with another. The full facts of the case referred to in the motion are not clear nor are the facts relating to the use of torture on Iraqi prisoners but the discovery of 170 persons in a basement requires immediate investigation and we need to know the facts.

The strength of the United States down the years has been that it showed a high moral purpose. Its finest hours were in coming to the aid of Europe during the First and Second World Wars and coming to the aid of Europe in assisting the ending of the Cold War and the unifying of the continent. All its finest moments came when it acted with clear moral authority. Unfortunately the same cannot be said about its activities in Iraq. The United States is devaluing itself in the manner in which it has conducted its activities in Iraq.

The House debated and divided on the issue of the invasion of Iraq but to make matters worse, what has happened since the invasion presents a very negative view of the United States. As a result, we are all reduced and the United States itself is reduced. We must be very clear in making our feelings known. As Senator Lydon stated and as Senator Norris said on many occasions, highlighting these issues is not damaging in any way to the relationship that exists between the United States and the Irish Republic. We are duty bound as a people very closely connected to the United States to highlight where it is going wrong and it appears to be going spectacularly wrong in Iraq.

I support what has been said about the reporting of the war. Senator Henry referred to the lack of coverage of the Iraq war in the United States. It is a given that television and radio in the United States is so commercialised and so geared towards a commercial pop agenda that current affairs are never a number one on the best sellers charts. It is disappointing and it should be noted that there appears to be a deliberate effort to ensure that the war in Iraq and its profound failures to date are not receiving in the United States the media attention or debate they deserve.

I note the Government amendment, parts of which I agree with. We welcome the referendum and the Security Council resolution and we hope they will in some small way lead to progress. However, the issue is for this House of the Oireachtas to be clear and unanimous in its condemnation of the use of chemical agents and weaponry. We must clearly demonstrate our most strident opposition to the use of torture, whether in Iraq, Guantanamo Bay or elsewhere. We must state loud and clear that these activities have no place in a civilised world and should not be practised in any form by a country such as the United States which for generations was the leading voice of human rights but now, sadly, is reducing and devaluing itself by the carrying out of these activities and these atrocities.