David Norris (Independent)

I am angry. Before the war, I visited Baghdad in an attempt to secure the human rights of the unfortunate people of Iraq. We got 43p per day because we were slavishly following the British instruction, but the British wanted to keep people like myself out of Iraq.

What can we do? We must be open. I believed that the item on corruption was going to be about Berlusconi. I remember the scandals in the Roman Catholic Church. Although I was one of the most trenchant critics, I stood up every time and stated that, because there were decent people, we should not tar everyone with the same brush. Let us have the facts and examine the real situation. When I attended a meeting of the IPU in Australia, I was given a first class ticket but I traded it in and travelled third class, even to Beijing where, on my own initiative, I raised questions that led to a significant cultural exchange. I was telephoned about the trip beforehand and asked whether I would enjoy myself on the so-called junket. The tabloid wrote its article before the trip.

I had a stand-up row with Mr. Gareth Evans about the situation in what was then East Timor and raised the matter of AIDS. I had things forced through that were reported in the medical and British newspapers, but there was not a single bloody line in the Irish newspapers.