Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charles Flanagan. I thank him for the work he has done to date on this case, of which the family is appreciative.

As the Minister is aware, Mr. Ibrahim Halawa has now been in an Egyptian prison for 554 days. For any teenager to be locked up for that length of time is not easy. It is be bad enough being locked up in one's own country, but it is much more difficult in a foreign country. This week, for the fourth time, his trial has been postponed. This is intolerable for him, first, being in prison in Cairo and, second, being so far from home. In fact, his home place is not far from where I live in Templeogue. It is outrageous that his trial has been postponed once again.

Mr. Halawa is a prisoner of conscious and was detained solely for peacefully exercising his rights. However, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Given that 493 others are involved in the same trial, one has to ask how, in the name of God, will anybody receive a fair trail in such a system. He was only 17 years old when he was put in prison. He was arrested with his three sisters who are now home. With the whole family, they have played a huge role in trying to have him released. I will keep the issue on the agenda until such time as he is released because I cannot see why he should remain in detention. According to the case file seen by Amnesty International Ireland, most of the 100 witnesses who are due to be called at the trial are police officers or government officials. One has to ask what kind of trial he will receive.

I acknowledge the work the Minister has done on this case, on which I have been keeping an eye. I am aware that he has been very active on it, as has the Irish ambassador. Is there is any other avenue we could explore, or is there a need to go down the same avenue again to keep the issue on the agenda with a view to having Mr. Halawa released? Perhaps the Minister might state what has been done to date and what action could follow. Mr. Halawa's family is very grateful for the efforts made by the Minister to date but think more could be done. This is a most deserving case. As Amnesty International Ireland has stated, the most Mr. Halawa could be accused of is being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He has been locked up for crimes he did not commit. I am not judge and jury, but I such incidents happen when one is in the wrong place at the wrong time, particularly in that country's system of justice. We must do everything we can to get him home.