Seanad debates

Wednesday, 16 May 2018

European Court Decision: Motion

 

10:30 am

Photo of Victor BoyhanVictor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the visitors to the Chamber. I am mindful of the fact that not all of the people who suffered this terrible miscarriage of justice are here today. That must be a very sad thought but I salute those brave and courageous men who have continued the fight. I hope that as a result of this appeal to the Grand Chamber, if it is successful, this Seanad will perhaps have shone a bright light in support of them.

I will not rehearse the horror stories. I too went to the audiovisual room and I congratulate Senator Ó Donnghaile, all of the Sinn Féin team and all the other people who signed this motion. I thank Sinn Féin for using its Private Members' time for this motion. When one meets these people face to face, one cannot do otherwise than believe them. People do not make up those sorts of stories. It was a horror and a great miscarriage of justice. I thank Sinn Féin for making the arrangements to bring these men here because there is nothing like looking a man in the eye, hearing his story, listening and being moved. The important thing is that we have to be moved into action and we have been moved to do something.

I seek clarification from the Minister of State on a number of matters. I read some reports yesterday in research for this debate and I noted a comment of the Tánaiste, Deputy Coveney, who stated that the appeal is not straightforward. We need to know what the impediments to such an appeal are. It has been reported that an appeal must be lodged by 20 June. Will the Minister of State confirm that? Separately, I have been informed that the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland is currently hearing civil proceedings in which it is claimed that a PSNI decision to end preliminary inquiries into the deep interrogation methods deployed against the 14 men was seriously flawed and should be squashed. Does the Minister of State or the Government know anything about the progress of those proceedings?

This is about the Government. It is about Seanad Éireann calling on the Government here today. We hear so much about what the Attorney General and the legal advisers say. I mean no disrespect to the Minister of State because I work exceptionally well with him, but I was terribly surprised to see him walk across the floor here today, given the significance of the story.

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