asked the Minister for Defence the number of soldiers at present in custody serving sentences as a result of offences committed while serving with the United Nations forces in the Congo; where such sentences are being served; whether any man involved in such offence was tried in the Congo itself; and, if so, by what authority; and what were the offences alleged to have been committed by any such soldier and the sentence passed in each case.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Sentences on Soldiers Serving in Congo.
23.
The number, according to the latest information available, is one.
This soldier was charged, in the Congo, with offences coming under the general heading of conduct to the prejudice of good order and discipline. The case was dealt with summarily by the soldier's commanding officer under the authority conveyed in Section 178 of the Defence Act, 1954, and the punishment awarded was detention for a term of twenty-eight days.
The soldier is undergoing the term of his detention in service custody in the Congo.