Laura Harmon (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister. I support wholeheartedly this practical Bill. Section 2 is practical and will ensure we uphold our obligations under international human rights law. We are at a defining moment for our humanity and what it means to be human. Palestine is currently a mirror to the soul of the world. Somebody said that the revolution will not be televised; well, the genocide is being televised. Anyone who watched "Prime Time" last night will agree with that given what we saw happening in hospitals in Gaza, with children affected by shrapnel screaming in pain. It is tempting for many to look away because it is the easier thing to do, but we must keep looking, watching, witnessing and acting on what is happening in Palestine. More than 18,000 children and babies have been murdered at the hands of the criminal and genocidal state of Israel.

We had the UN special rapporteur, Francesca Albanese, in the House two weeks ago when Senator Black hosted a briefing. Francesca Albanese said that if Palestine is a crime scene, then it has all our fingerprints on it. It is up to us to prove that we are not complicit. Yes, the Government has taken action on this and this House, the Upper House, has a strong history of supporting Palestine. Former Senator Averil Power, for example, had a Bill passed in this House on recognising Palestine. That strong history must be continued. The world order has changed. The US is not the leader of the free world. This genocide is being facilitated by the US financially, militarily and politically and we must not be associated with it. We must act. The State is complicit if we allow arms to be flown through our airspace when we have the power to stop this. In order to stop it, we need to enact this Bill. We need to stop use of Shannon Airport and pass the occupied territories Bill, which is a separate matter.

As Senator Black said, we have an obligation to uphold the Genocide Convention to ensure we are not complicit. The UN General Assembly, in September 2024, called for a halt to the transfer of arms to Israel. In 2024, the UN Human Rights Council called for an embargo on arms to Israel. This is about upholding our international obligations. These arms are being sent to destroy life-giving centres in Palestine, including hospitals, maternity wards and IVF clinics, and the lives of women, pregnant women, babies and men. We can see it every single day with our own eyes. We cannot look away or do nothing. The world must know that the humanity of the Irish people cannot be bought or sold. I utterly reject the premise or any premise that our economic security or the world's economic security is up for sale or for that for economic security Palestinians must continue to die or be obliterated. We need to act. We need to support this Bill. The world must know that Ireland continues to stand with the people of Palestine.When our children and our grandchildren ask us what we did when this genocide was happening - and they will ask - I hope that we can all turn to them and say that we did not do the bare minimum but, rather, we did everything in our power and were not afraid to stand up and take action. Certainly, I hope we can say that this House took all the action it could take. I wholeheartedly support the Civil Engagement Group and the Bill it has brought before this House.