David Norris (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I join with my colleagues in calling for a debate on the Smithwick report and I compliment Judge Smithwick on the clarity of his conclusions. I have not had the opportunity to read the whole report but I have read the shortened accounts of it in the newspapers. It is significant that he said it is distressing and disheartening that even today, a culture appears to prevail in the Garda where loyalty is prized above honesty. That really needs to be looked at and we need to have independent supervision of the Garda. In every profession, there should be an independent regulator. I think that should be the case in the media, the Garda, the legal profession and so on. I am also very glad the Government acted so swiftly and honourably in making an apology to the families, who must be deeply distressed by this situation.

Along with one of my colleagues, I was horrified to hear the leader of Sinn Féin, Deputy Gerry Adams, speak on Newstalk.

There seemed to be a kind of cold-heartedness and cynicism about the entire thing. To blame the victim in this way suggests to me that Deputy Adams is unfit for his position as leader of Sinn Féin, a democratic party, in the other House. He said that they showed disregard for their own security and sat comfortably in Dundalk police station. Why should they not? They were police officers and they were cooperating, as they thought, with the Garda in Dundalk. I am sure that the overwhelming majority of members of An Garda Síochána feel betrayed by what happened in this instance. It is very regrettable. These things, unfortunately, appear to have happened on both sides. There are strong indications of collusion on the part of the British Government with certain Loyalist elements. This is appalling, depressing and disheartening. I am glad that we have faced up to it.

The person or persons responsible for setting up these two brave police officers for their murder betrayed their own colleagues in a most extraordinary way and this is something for which they stand reproached by the entire society. I would like to think, and I believe strongly, that one of the difficulties at that time was the lack of transfer of intelligence between the two forces. Information was made available to An Garda Síochána and apparently was not transmitted to the PSNI. There seems to have been an awkwardness in communication. I believe that has passed. I very much welcome the fact that there is strong co-operation between the two police forces. It is a sad day.

In that context there is a case which was repeatedly raised in this House about which a Minister from the previous Government, a very decent man, accepted that there was a gross injustice, the case of Dónal de Róiste who was dishonourably discharged from the army simply on the basis that he went to a pub in which there were Republican sympathisers. This was guilt by attainder, it was medieval. It was a gross and shocking injustice. This House voted and the Minister said that it was so but nothing has yet been done. This House should discuss that matter again. This man was completely innocent but for some obscure reason he was fired from his job, dishonourably discharged and his family was extremely distressed. It was raked up in the most disgusting way when his sister ran for the Irish Presidency but nothing has been done about it, although we have all recognised that it was an injustice. On the other hand, there was a very long period over which it was suggested, known and openly spoken about that there had been some degree of collusion and little was done. I would like that, parallel with this discussion, we again open the case of Dónal de Róiste and I would like my colleagues to join me in this, simply out of fairness because we need equity in all these matters.