Written answers

Tuesday, 11 July 2017

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Consular Services Provision

Photo of Micheál MartinMicheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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260. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has received correspondence regarding genuine health concerns of a person (details supplied); if he or his officials or the ambassador has contacted the Philippine Government expressing concerns regarding the delay in their case being appealed while their health deteriorates; if a request to review same on humanitarian grounds is being made; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32454/17]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department has been providing ongoing assistance to the individual at the centre of this long-running and difficult consular case since the time of his arrest.

I am very much aware of concerns about this individual’s health, and the Irish Government’s concerns in this regard have been raised with the Philippines authorities on numerous occasions. My predecessor as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade raised this citizen’s case and our concerns personally and directly with his Philippines counterpart when he met him in September 2016. The case has also been raised by my officials with the Philippines Ambassador to Ireland and by the Irish Ambassador to the Philippines with senior officials at the Foreign Ministry in Manila.

Because the legal proceedings continue to be active before the courts in The Philippines, there are obvious constraints on what the Irish Government can do. However, we have made repeated representations stressing the humanitarian concerns in this case and requesting that the pending appeal be expedited. Notably, in November 2016 the Embassy of Ireland in Singapore, which is accredited to The Philippines, wrote to the Supreme Court Administrator in Manila, requesting on behalf of the Irish Government that the appeal hearing in our citizen’s case be expedited on humanitarian grounds.

On 11th January 2017 an official from our Embassy travelled to Manila and followed up on that representation by raising the case directly and at a senior level with the Philippines Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Embassy official underlined our concerns for the citizen’s health and welfare in view of the length of time it has taken for the appeal to be heard.

In April 2017 we received a notification from the Supreme Court Administrator advising that the Court was ordering the elevation of the records to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court’s letter specifically noted that the Irish Government had asked that the appeal be expedited on humanitarian grounds.

It is important to remember that this is an ongoing legal case and that the Irish Government cannot intervene in any substantive way in a matter before the courts in another country, and this has consistently been made clear to this citizen. It is for his legal representatives to advise him and to act on his behalf in matters before the courts.

The Consul from our Embassy has previously visited this man in The Philippines and has offered to meet him again. This man has also been in regular direct e-mail contact with my Department and with the Embassy. Officials from my Department have also met with this citizen’s designated representative in Ireland and are open to doing so again.

Let me assure the Deputy and the House that my Department will continue to provide all appropriate consular assistance to this citizen.

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