Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)

Tá mé lán sásta freastal ar an ábhar an-tábhachtach cuimsithe idirnáisiúnta seo. Táimid an-buíoch don Fhreasúra gur chúir sé an rún tábhachtach seo faoi bhráid an Tí seo agus go bhfuilimid le chéile chun díospóireacht a bheith eadrainn air.

I welcome this opportunity to address the Seanad on this most sensitive issue. The Taoiseach and the Minister for Foreign Affairs have on numerous occasions made clear in Dáil Éireann the Government's complete opposition to the practice of so-called extraordinary rendition. It is my privilege to do likewise here in Seanad Éireann, not alone on my own behalf but also on behalf of my party and on behalf of the Government. Consistent with this opposition, the Government is determined to ensure that all of our obligations to protect human rights, under both international and domestic laws, are fulfilled. There can be no question of sacrificing human rights in the fight against terrorism.

The question before the Seanad this evening is, however, more specific. It is whether this House should establish a select committee on extraordinary rendition and the use of Irish airports. According to the terms of the Private Members' motion, the select committee would consider four points, namely allegations relating to certain landings at Irish airports, the way in which the State can determine the purpose of different flights, the way in which the State can investigate allegations in this area and the adequacy of Irish laws in this area.

I recommend that Senators not support this motion for the following reasons. First, comprehensive investigations on extraordinary rendition are already underway in the Council of Europe and the European Parliament. It is difficult to see what value an additional inquiry here would add to these investigations. Second, Ireland, along with only two other European countries, has received specific, categoric and unqualified assurances on this issue from the United States authorities that prisoners have not been transferred through Irish territory, nor would they be, without our permission.

Third, it is clear from the recent report published by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe that Ireland's practices with respect to dealing with the different categories of aircraft that land at Irish airports are fully in line with those of our partners. Fourth, and most significantly, I would emphasise the complete lack of any specific evidence that the law has been breached at Irish airports in any way. Indeed, there are not even any concrete or particular individual allegations. Finally, one week before we celebrate in Washington D.C. the many links binding our two countries, I would invite Senators to consider for a moment the value that we all attach to Ireland's relationship with the United States. When all of these points are considered, I hope the House will agree that the proposed establishment of a select committee is unwarranted and unnecessary.

Senators will already have seen copies of the Government's comprehensive reply to a questionnaire on the subject of the possible unacknowledged deprivation of liberty circulated by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Mr. Terry Davis. In its reply, the Government confirmed that in answering the questionnaire it had unearthed no occurrence of unacknowledged deprivation of liberty, including in the context of extraordinary rendition. On 1 March last, just one week ago, the Secretary General released his preliminary analysis of the 46 replies which he had received. Ireland is one of only 13 countries whose replies the Secretary General deemed sufficiently comprehensive not to require clarification. His report shows that Ireland's practice is fully in line with that of all partners, and does nothing to undermine the value of the factual, categorical and unqualified assurances that we have received from the United States authorities.

The Government's reply makes clear that investigations have not been confined to the international level. In addition to the inter-departmental investigations that were occasioned in order to provide a comprehensive reply to the Secretary General, the Government's reply notes that three investigations were conducted by the Garda Síochána into complaints surrounding extraordinary rendition. In two cases, in accordance with standard procedures, papers were forwarded to the DPP. In neither case was any further action found to be warranted, owing to the inadequacy of the evidence that any unlawful activity had occurred.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is also conducting an inquiry, in addition to that of the Secretary General. Separate to the Council of Europe, the European Parliament has established a temporary committee to investigate allegations made in this area. The Government has stated it will co-operate to the fullest extent practicable with this investigation. There will, presumably, be a considerable overlap, between the investigation of the European Parliament and that of the Council of Europe.

I would like to turn to the issue of the assurances that the Government has received from the United States authorities. When our Government became aware in 2004 of allegations regarding extraordinary rendition, urgent contact was made with the United States authorities to ensure that the Irish position was fully understood and respected. The Government sought and received explicit, categorical assurances that prisoners had not been, nor would they be, transferred through Irish territory, without the express permission of the Irish authorities. It was made clear that, in conformity with the relevant domestic and international laws, permission would not be granted for the transit of an aircraft participating in an extraordinary rendition operation or for any other unlawful act.

The US authorities' assurances were confirmed by the Secretary of State, Dr. Condoleezza Rice, at a bilateral meeting in Washington, DC, with the Minister for Foreign Affairs on 1 December 2005 and they have been repeated at several meetings in 2006. The Government accepts these assurances, which are of a particular clarity and completeness. That only two other European countries have received bilateral assurances of such a categorical nature only goes to emphasise their credibility and solidity. The assurances do not depend on any interpretation of what is or is not legal under international law, as they relate to a simple question of fact.

The Government has carefully considered the value of these assurances having regard to our obligations under international law. The Government is satisfied that it is entitled under international law to rely on clear and explicit factual assurances given by the government of a friendly state, on a matter which is within the direct control of that government. Contrary to what some have suggested, the case law of the European Court of Human Rights does not hold that diplomatic assurances cannot be relied on in such a situation.

Aside from regular scheduled airline flights, US aircraft visiting Ireland can be divided into three categories: military aircraft, troop transports — civil aircraft, which have been chartered by the US military — and private civil aircraft of the type alleged to be involved in extraordinary rendition flights. Military-state aircraft form a specific class of aircraft, which require permission to land in Ireland. Once permission is granted, such aircraft are immune from search in accordance with the internationally accepted principle of state immunity. There is no suggestion that this category of aircraft has any involvement in extraordinary rendition. Troop transports, similarly, are not mentioned in the allegations concerning extraordinary rendition. These aircraft, which are treated as normal civil aircraft for the purposes of search and inspection, are required to seek permission to land in Ireland, owing to the fact that troops they are transporting tend to travel with their personal weapons.

The final category of aircraft comprises mainly small business jets. In accordance with the 1944 Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation, civil aircraft making unscheduled flights such as these may land for technical stops such as refuelling without a requirement for permission. Thousands of such aircraft pass through Ireland every year. As with the troop transports, the Garda is fully entitled to search these aircraft if it has a reasonable belief that a crime is being committed on board. This right of search derives from a number of sources, including our Constitution, the common law and the air navigation Acts and it is described in detail in the Government's reply to the Council of Europe questionnaire. It has been suggested by some, that the lack of a power of search, contained in the Criminal Justice (United Nations Convention Against Torture) Act 2000, somehow undermines the right of the Garda to search these aircraft but this is patently untrue. The fact that legislation may not contain search powers does nothing to undermine the fact that they exist and are derived from other sources.

The Secretary General's report and inquiries by our embassies abroad, confirm that Ireland's practice is squarely in line with that of other partners in respect of all three categories of aircraft. Not least given the quality of the assurances that we have received, it would not be wise or appropriate for Ireland alone to depart from standard international practice. Secretary General Davis has, in very general terms, suggested that such practice be reviewed. He says he will in due course make concrete proposals. If and when he does so, we will carefully examine them with our partners.

Those opposed to the Government's position in this debate, have highlighted that, to date, the Garda has not searched any aircraft for prisoners or signs that prisoners may have been transported. They have suggested it is the fault of the Government that such a search has not occurred. We are fortunate that we do not live in a society where searches are carried out or prosecutions launched at the bidding of the Government. The Garda and the Director of Public Prosecutions have the independent capacity to launch a criminal process, if the grounds exist for them to do so but the reality is there is a complete lack of evidence of illegal activity. A striking feature of most of the allegations made in this area is their vague and circumstantial character. They depend on the retrospective imposition of a pattern of activity on a range of data long after the alleged event and long after any conceivable action, could have been taken.

The most frequently repeated, specific allegation with which everybody will be familiar is that on 18 February 2003, a Gulfstream jet, which had delivered Abu Omar, who had been seized in Milan, to Cairo landed at Shannon on its return leg to Washington DC. Even this allegation accepts the fact that no prisoner was on board, as the aeroplane came through. The allegations as to the previous activities of this aeroplane are substantiated, it is claimed, although no supporting materials have been provided, by the retrospective interpretation of flight logs and FAA data. Even if they are true, it would have been entirely impossible at the time, to have known of the aircraft's involvement in an earlier extraordinary rendition operation, as it passed empty though Ireland. Moreover, it is impossible to verify or control the previous or future activities, which might take place outside our jurisdiction, before or after an empty aeroplane passed through. In what way do the Government's critics suggest that any action they recommend would have had the slightest practical impact in this case?

There is nothing of significance in the recent release of flight data by the British Ministry of Defence. The aircraft mentioned have been the subject of media reports over a long period and their landings at Shannon Airport were confirmed to Dáil Éireann in December 2005 in reply to a parliamentary question by the Minister for Transport. In his reply, the Minister informed the House that these aircraft landed at Shannon for technical purposes, namely, they were technical or refuelling stops, to which I have alluded. In accordance with the 1944 Chicago Convention, civil aircraft may land in Ireland for technical stops without notifying the Department of Transport. Thousands of such aircraft pass through Ireland every year. There is nothing in the newly released data to contradict or undermine the specific or categoric assurances we have received from the US authorities that prisoners have not been transferred through Irish territory nor would they be without our permission.

I referred to the quality of the assurances we have received from the United States authorities, but I would like to touch on the value of our relationship with that country. Ireland has derived substantial economic benefit from its close relations with the USA. It is our largest export market and the main source of foreign direct investment. The commitment that the US has shown in nurturing the peace process in Ireland is witnessed in tangible form by its contribution of $458 million to the International Fund for Ireland, since 1986, an average of $28 million per annum. It is not just about money. Among other things, the US is home to millions of people of Irish birth and descent, including the undocumented, on whose behalf the Taoiseach and Minister for Foreign Affairs will lobby next week. We receive ongoing active and constructive support from the US for the peace process in Northern Ireland. This support, from both Republican and Democratic administrations over the years and from both sides of Congress, has played a profoundly important role in underpinning the peace process on this Island.

In March 2003, Dáil Éireann voted to endorse the Government's decision to continue the long-standing practice of making landing facilities available to US military aircraft at Shannon Airport. I know this is appreciated in Washington, and only last week, President Bush availed of the facilities on a stop-over. The transit through Shannon of US forces, on their way to Iraq is covered by a number of UN Security Council resolutions, dating back to 2003. The most recent of these was agreed by the Security Council, unanimously, on 8 November 2005.

Despite our closeness to the United States, this does not mean that though friends we are in any way unwilling or hesitant to convey clear views on issues of concern. We have done so consistently, I have spoken to the United States ambassador on such issues and we constantly communicate our position at the highest level, from the Taoiseach to the President, from the Minister for Foreign Affairs to the Secretary of State and across all diplomatic levels. We have made clear that we do not believe that extraordinary rendition is justifiable in any circumstances. The Minister for Foreign Affairs has made clear our belief that the Guantanamo facility, should be closed. This has been made clear publicly and privately.

We come to a view on the merits of each particular situation. In this instance, it is emphatically not the case that we are unduly or unreasonably influenced by our relationship with the United States. However, it would be irresponsible for any Government, in the absence of a good and sound reason for doing so, to act as if it did not believe clear assurances, which have been repeated at very high levels.

The situation with which the Government is faced with respect to extraordinary rendition and the use of Irish Airports is twofold. On the one hand, we have categoric, specific assurances from the Government of a country with which we enjoy exceptionally close relations that prisoners have not been transferred through Irish territory, nor would they be without our permission. On the other hand, we have a loose collection of unsubstantiated allegations which claim to cast doubt on these assurances but are unsupported by any evidence.

Given this situation, I trust Senators will agree that there is no reason to change Government policy in this area. Furthermore, I urge, following my description of the different investigations already under way along with the quality of the assurances we have received from the US Authorities, the lack of evidence of any misuse of Irish Airports and the fact that our practice is completely in line with that of our partners, that this House reject the motion to establish a select committee. I trust that this puts the matter in full context for all members of the House.