Join in the candle-lit procession next Thurs, 23 February at 5.30pm!

dublin | anti-war / imperialism | news report

Tuesday February 21, 2006 01:58

by Laurence - Coisantoiri Siochana / The Peace Network

info at cosantoiri dot org

Candle-lit Procession from Minister Mc Dowell's Constituency Office

Concerned citizens and activists are planning to hold a vigil next Thursday, 23 February at 5.30pm at The Diamond, Ranelagh, Dublin (and, if possible, also outside Justice Minister McDowell's constituency office) in a bid to force him to implement the law regarding aircraft landing at Shannon Airport. Those planes MUST be searched for suspected torture victims and radioactive weapons. Furthermore, there will be a call to stop the harassment of peace activists who monitor Shannon.

Cosantoiri Siochana invite people to join them for this candle-lit vigil which will terminate by walking in single-file procession to Rathmines Garda Station to hand in a signed letter to the Superintendent commemorating the event.

Candles will be supplied but please, if possible, bring a along a jamjar or other suitable receptacle in case of breezy weather!

A group of concerned citizens, irate constituents and peace activists are planning to hold a candle-lit vigil next Thursday, 23 February at 5.30pm at The Diamond, Ranelagh, Dublin in a bid to force Justice Minister, Michael McDowell to implement the law regarding the searching of all aircraft landing at Shannon Airport. If possible, the group will also congregate outside McDowell's constituency office before marching in single file to Rathmines Garda Station, where they will hand in a signed letter to the Superintendent commemorating both their concern and their peaceful action.

Despite substantial grounds for suspecting that aircraft landing at Shannon are involved in torture, Minister McDowell insists that the gardai have no right to mandatorially search aircraft. As citizens of Ireland, we wish to complain o f suspected grave breaches of Irish human rights law. Section 4 (1) of the Criminal Justice (UN Convention against Torture) Act 2000 states:

'A person shall not be expelled or returned from the State to another state if the Minister is of the opinion that there are substantial grounds for believing that the person would be subjected to torture'.

Furthermore, the Minister for Foreign Affairs told the Dail in November 2005:

'A state is obliged (under the European |Convention on Human Rights) to take measures when it knows that there are substantial grounds for believing that a person faces a real risk of being subjected to torture'.

Flight records for CIA-chartered planes from September 2001-September 2005 shows that six of these planes have landed at Shannon more than thirty-five times. These include a Gulfstream jet, N379P, involved in the abduction of two men from Sweden in 2001, from where they were 'rendered' to Egypt and allegedly tortured; a 737 registered as N4476S, which had been spotted at Shannon, and which took part in the kidnapping of the German, Khaled-el-Masri, who was taken to Afghanistan and tortured; and the plane involved in the abduction of Abu Omar from Italy to Egypt in January 2003, which Minister Martin Cullen admitted made a 'technical stop' at Shannon during that mission.

Minister Dermot Ahern said in November 2005: 'If anyone has any evidence of any of these flights, please give me a call and I will have it immediately investigated.' Additionally, Minister McDowell told the Seanad in June 2004: 'It would cause me grave concern if I thought people were being smuggled through Irish territory in circumstances that amounted to unlawful detention in Irish law or international law for that matter.'

A complaint has already been issued by the Spanish Supreme Court for similar illegal acts perpetrated by the US in Spain. Germany and Italy have launched investigations, and the Council of Europe is conducting a continent-wide inquiry into alleged complicity by European states in illegal detention and torture. In these circumstances, why has a recent attempt to launch a Seanad investigation been blocked? Not only are the Irish authorities preventing the Gardai from doing their duty, they are also effectively criminalizing Irish citizens who have played a key role in documenting the extent of Irish complicity in the 'War on Terror'.

There are substantial and urgent grounds for suspecting that grave breaches of human rights law are taking place at Shannon and we call on Justice Minister, Michael McDowell to order an immediate investigtion.

Please join us at The Diamond, Ranelagh, next Thursday, 23 February at 5.30pm in an effort to force McDowell to act! Candles will be supplied but it's advisable to bring along a jamjar or other suitable receptacle in case the weather's breezy.