23 November 2005
Mr. Norris: I move:
That Seanad Éireann concerned at the progress of the war in Iraq, and in light of recent revelations and admissions by the United States authorities:
----condemns the use of chemical agents such as white phosphorus, MK77, by US forces;
----expresses its revulsion at the discovery of 170 persons apparently victims of torture in the basement of the Iraqi Interior Ministry;
----calls upon the Irish Government to review its policy on the use of Shannon Airport and to make a definite and credible statement concerning the nature of this traffic, in particular, the use of the airport by the Gulfstream Five jet aircraft which has been implicated in the policy of extraordinary rendition;
----calls for restrictions on the international media in the reporting of the Iraqi war to be lifted and for full access to be granted to international agencies such as the Red Cross, Red Crescent, etc., in order to allow them to assess the impact of military operations on the civilian population of Iraq; and
----calls for the establishment of an international inquiry into the attack on Falluja.
Dr. Henry: It is an honour to second the motion. When I supported Senator Norris's recent call on the Order of Business for a debate on the situation in Iraq, I reminded the House of the iconic photographs of children in Vietnam burnt with white phosphorous and trying to flee. It was impossible for them to escape it, however, because this substance sticks to the skin. The world was appalled by those photographs. To see the United States army using such a weapon again in areas where there are civilians is dreadful. It is important to say that none of us believe the entire United States population supports such action. During a recent visit to Washington, I found that most people, many of them Republicans, are shocked at what is happening.
The use of this agent is dreadful. Senator Norris has spoken in some detail about its effects and the illegality of its use. The inhalation of the smoke, from which people cannot escape, causes immediate scarring of the lungs and subsequent suffocation. The medical description tells us that the body is burned from the inside out. Persons who are struck by the smoke from white phosphorous are burned almost immediately and the effect is as bad as, if not worse than, that of napalm. The smoke affects not only the skin but also penetrates the subcutaneous tissues where it causes the person to be burned to the bone. Sometimes, extraordinarily, the clothes of the victim are left intact because they are not necessarily set on fire by the phosphorous.
The March 2005 edition of Field Artillery describes how white phosphorous was used in what were the unfortunately named "shake and bake" missions to flush out insurgents. No consideration was given, however, to the so-called collateral damage done to civilians. Senator Norris has vividly described what doctors in Falluja saw of those civilians burnt by white phosphorous. Another attractive ingredient is now being added to these canisters in the "shake and bake" bombings. The addition of polystyrene pellets ensures there is better adherence to the victim's flesh. It is impossible to remove them and prevent further burn damage. This is a new innovation.
Reports from Iraq in the United States media give little idea of how life goes on there because many reporters are embedded with the military. I found it particularly sad in Washington to find no reports in the newspapers or on television about what is happening. There is nothing like the coverage we receive in this country. There were some reports on public service radio but that is listened to by less than 10% of the population. There is an extraordinary dearth of information in that country. If any of us ask our interns what they know about Iraq and what they have discovered since they came here, I am sure they will agree with what I have said.
Nor is the situation for the civilian population being explained, quite apart from what is happening with the military. Some of the best of the services in the Middle East were those in Iraq, particularly prior to the imposition of UN sanctions. Saddam Hussein was a dreadful man but his people enjoyed a health service better than that in Saudi Arabia, for all its petrol dollars. This is evident from an examination of Iraq's maternal and infant mortality figures and the subsequent slide since the early 1990s. Its people must contend with a far worse situation since the occupation.
Under the Geneva Convention, occupying forces are supposed to protect the civilian population. The United States Attorney General, Mr. Alberto Gonzales, has described the provisions of the convention as "quaint", an unfortunate description for the United States military who must go and fight there. If one does not intend to abide by the Geneva Convention, one cannot expect the opposition to give the benefits of that international protocol to one's own army.
Going through Shannon Airport on several occasions recently, I looked with dismay at the unfortunate United States soldiers returning to Iraq. They all seemed to have been home for just 15 days. Some 40% of those National Guard members on duty in Iraq never expected to serve in foreign conflicts. A large number of them are college students who joined the military in order to get their fees paid and receive other supports in their study efforts. These are the people being put to war at the command of those very wicked people in Washington. As I observed them at Shannon, I realised that five of them would be killed each day. By the time I had returned from the United States, a considerable number of them would have been dead.
Senator Norris spoke about the shocking outing to Falluja. The civilians who tried to get out succeeded in doing so. Men of military age were stopped and sent back, as has happened in other towns. Those who are old, infirm, pregnant or ill, however, cannot flee and it was their bodies that were found. People with diabetes and other chronic illnesses cannot flee. Large numbers of the population cannot do so. We have seen no photographs of the tent cities now in place outside Falluja because the building is proceeding at an extraordinarily slow pace.
On 23 June 2004, during the Report Stage debate on the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Bill 2003, I said to the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform:
I wish to raise with the Minister a matter which has been of great concern to the House. Can he assure us that untried and unsentenced people are not being brought through Shannon from goodness knows where to Guantanamo Bay? We raised this issue in the House several times ... and it has been a cause of real concern to us because many Irish citizens would not like to think that was happening.
The Minister said in his reply:
Obviously, I have no notice of that issue, although, apparently, the Senator has raised it on other occasions in the House. Any person who is on the soil of Ireland is entitled to the protection of our Constitution. No person can be brought through the soil of Ireland in the custody of any other state except in accordance with international law. If the Senator has reason to believe any person has been transited through Irish territory, in unlawful custody, particularly to Quantanamo, I would be interested to hear it because I would respond to it immediately. We have our Constitution and the right of the freedom of the individual is not confined to citizens; it applies to all persons. Therefore, 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 in international law for that matter.
We have not made half enough effort to try to find out what is happening on those aeroplanes.
Mr. Norris: Hear, hear.
Dr. Henry: It is interesting that many other countries are alarmed by this matter.
Mr. Norris: Yes.
Dr. Henry: Spain, England, Germany and many others have asked what is going through on some of these American aeroplanes. Were the cargo so innocent that it could be easily examined, all the Americans would need to do would be to say: "Come friends, for friends we are, and look inside".
I am deeply concerned by this issue. It is important that we address the matter of American troops in Shannon. When they reach the other end of their flights in Washington, they say they know they landed in Shannon on their way to Iraq and it was the only part of Ireland they saw. What if people in Guantanamo Bay and God knows where else they were tortured announced that they could see the green fields of Ireland through their windows?
Mr. Norris: Exactly.
Dr. Henry: It would be a shocking situation and none of us wish to believe it could happen.
Mr. Lydon: I move:
To delete all words after "Seanad Éireann" and substitute the following:
----welcoming the political progress in Iraq as preparations continue for the holding of democratic elections under the new constitution on 15 December, and concerned by the serious security situation and continuing allegations of abuses of human rights;
----welcomes the outcome of the 15 October referendum, which approved the new Constitution for Iraq and looks forward to the democratic elections on 15 December for a sovereign Iraq Assembly and Government;
----welcomes the efforts of the Arab League in co-operation with the parties in Iraq to organise a national reconciliation summit with the objective of ending the tragic violence in the country and ensuring the full participation of all communities in Iraq's transition to full democracy, in line with Security Council Resolution 1546 of 2004;
----notes the unanimous adoption of Security Council Resolution 1637 on 8 November 2005, which, responding to a request from the Government of Iraq, reaffirmed the authorisation for the multinational force and decided to extend its mandate until 31 December 2006
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