There can be no dispute about the national desirability of maintaining friendly relations between Ireland and Britain but these relations will be difficult to maintain and much more difficult to cultivate if the dignity and sovereignty of Ireland is to be repeatedly affronted by the forcible boarding of Irish vessels at sea, either on the high seas or in the territorial waters of any country, or in sea lanes which are international or in what are, beyond all doubt or dispute, the territorial waters of this State.
I express that view at the outset because of the necessity of repudiating the mischievous suggestion of the Minister for Transport and Power earlier today that our protests in this matter were in conflict with the Fine Gael resolution last week which called for the repudiation of the use of force for the purpose of achieving Irish unity. There is no conflict whatever between asserting before the world our right that our ships proceeding on inoffensive passage should not be subjected to stoppage and interference by a foreign power, and our desire that the unity of Ireland would come about through the goodwill of all our people as a matter of conviction.
Our approach to this is not affected by any feelings of Anglophobia. Our attitude would be precisely the same if it were a forcible Russian, American, German or Chinese boarding of an Irish vessel. A vessel of any country which sails under the flag of that country is entitled to the full protection of the flag's State. It would appear in the light of interference which has already occurred that we are not giving to ships sailing under the Irish Flag the protection to which they are entitled. Three minesweepers have recently been delivered which enable us now, after years of neglect on the part of the Government, to provide for ships proceeding towards Irish ports the protection necessary against unlawful interference by a foreign power. It was in the light of this realisation that we now have the means which we did not have last November to protect our ships that we asked the Minister for Defence for an indication that we were now deploying some of our naval force to protect Irish ships from the kind of interference to which they have been subjected by the British Navy. If, as the Minister today suggested, we should be doing all in our power, as we in Fine Gael certainly believe we should, to prevent arms being imported into the North of Ireland through this country, we have available to us every means to stop that. Those means would include the searching of ships when they arrive in Irish ports. If the British authorities are sincere in their anxiety to prevent the use of Irish ports for the importation of arms illegally they would clearly have an obligation, where they suspect that arms are being imported illegally, to inform the Irish authorities who, in turn, could inspect the ships and take whatever action was necessary to prevent the illegal importation of arms. If I understand the Minister correctly today and last November, he seems to share the claim of the British authorities that they can take steps to stop the illegal importation of arms through Irish ports on Irish ships. I say, with all respect, that it is no function of the British Navy to stop the importation of arms, whether illegal or lawful, into Irish ports. That is a matter for the sovereign Irish Government and it is no function of the British authorities to assume that arms proceeding towards the South of Ireland are being illegally imported or that their ultimate destination is the North of Ireland. This is a question of asserting the absolute sovereignty of Ireland and the right of ships flying the Irish Flag to proceed on their courses without the offensive interference to which they have been subjected by the British authorities. If the British authorities suggest that they have received information which leads them to believe that some Irish shipping line or lines have been used for the illegal importation of arms they may take such steps are are legally available to them to stop such arms being used in the North of Ireland.
I believe that the British authorities should carefully examine any suggestions which have been made about Greenore Ferries being used for the illegal importation of arms into the North of Ireland. Greenore ferries is a very small concern but it is an independent concern successfully operating a legitimate business and providing a very necessary service for industry in the east and north-east of our country, including many industries in Northern Ireland. If the British authorities have received complaints about Greenore Ferries it seems to me that these complaints are highly suspect. What is the source of these complaints? On three occasions a vessel belonging to Greenore Ferries has been searched by the British Navy, apparently as a result of mischievious complaints lodged with the British authorities. On each occasion it has been found that there was no justification for the complaint. The members of the Seamen's Union of Ireland who operate on Irish flagships between Irish and British ports are understandably very perturbed and annoyed by what has taken place. These people share with the rest of us the desire that Ireland be united through agreement, but they resent deeply the fact that they have been subjected to this cloud of suspicion that they are engaged in unlawful activities when all the attempts to date to prove so have been negatived by the fact that, when the ships were searched, they were found not to contain arms.
We think that the time has now come not to rely any longer upon diplomatic protest. We were informed last November that our Government had made a demarche to the British authorities. We were urged not to make too loud a complaint in our Parliament lest, by doing so, it would make it difficult for the British authorities to adopt the right course. I completely understand the difficulties which face any country once there is a public issue made of any particular stand which they take. We held our peace. We were prepared last November to accept the bona fides of our own Government and of the British Government to achieve a formula which would prevent any further incidents of a like nature occurring. We were led to expect from the inactivity of the last four or five months that a suitable arrangement had been arrived at. Now it appears that all that has been rendered at nought. It leads one, therefore, to ask the question whether this recent gross intervention with Irish shipping is a gesture towards the right wing of unionism in the North of Ireland? Is this an exercise by the Westminster Government to placate Northern unionists, to show them that once more the British lion will whip the Irish Republicans?
It is a sinister event that this further forcible boarding of an Irish vessel should occur in the same week as there appear to be unhealthy trends towards the right wing in the north of Ireland. If my remarks cause embarrassment, if resentment is felt by the British authorities at my remarks, on their head be the consequences for their own action. This is a sovereign independent Parliament which has not only a right but a duty to assert the sovereignty of Irish soil and Irish vessels. Those vessels are entitled to the full protection of the military forces of this State.
Among the questions which I asked today, which were not answered by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, whom I take it was answering not because he had any individual responsibility but was acting on behalf of the Minister for Defence, was the one which asked him to specify the rights which this State had to detain, arrest, imprison and punish members of the armed forces of another country who bear arms and enter without leave on the territory of, or a vessel belonging to, this country. That was one of the many questions which were not answered to-day. Is it not time that it was answered and that we took steps, if necessary, to put armed forces aboard Irish vessels which are being subjected to this illegal intervention by British forces and that we arrested and, if necessary, interned, troops who forcibly enter on Irish vessels or Irish soil?
None of what the Minister said has any bearing on our desire to achieve the unity of Ireland through peaceful means. If there is a difficulty, if there is a problem, if there are pressures in the north of Ireland we are not responsible for them. It is no excuse to say that there are diplomatic difficulties and one must have regard to the delicacy of the situation, one must avoid doing anything to make the situation any more complicated. Our sovereignty is absolute in this matter and we must not forget this forcible trespass or even accidental trespass which has occurred.
We appreciate that there have been several crossings of the border between the Republic and the north of Ireland. Through accident those crossings have taken place and we have suffered them, accepting the difficulties which may exist where you have not got clearly defined boundaries but it seems to me that as we have now so many incidents of forcible boarding of Irish vessels we can no longer tolerate as forgiveable accidents the crossings of the land boundaries by British forces in uniform and armed. This may require a very serious and expensive deployment of our naval forces and our land forces on the high seas and on our own territory but we must assert, unless we are prepared to accept an inferior position, our right to complete sovereignty over our waters, to complete sovereignty of our vessels flying under the Irish Flag and to complete sovereignty of our land territory.
There are several remedies available to the British authorities, without causing us any offence, if they have reason to believe that ships lying between Britain and Ireland are carrying arms. They could seize the vessels in British ports. As I understand it they have not done so. If they have reason to believe that the vessels are being met on the high seas by other vessels and there loaded with guns and ammunition they can follow the ships plying between British and Irish ports to make sure this does not occur.
This may be an expensive procedure but this is a matter for the British Royal Navy and the British taxpayer to bear. No matter how expensive or inconvenient it may be it does not justify them in saying: "It is too expensive" and that they can then affront a friendly country by making forcible boardings of their ships, either on the high seas or in our territorial waters. It is a clear principle of international law that ships are entitled to proceed on innocent passage on the shipping lanes of the world even if they entered into what are claimed to be the territorial waters of a particular country. The British action is illegal and is unfriendly and we think that the reasonable, diplomatic approaches which we have been making in this matter are clearly being ignored and that a time has now come to express ourselves in a far more definite way, not as an exercise of gun diplomacy, such as the Minister suggested today, but for the purpose of asserting our sovereignty, on which we will allow nobody to trample.
At its best the British action is an action of folly because it promotes distaste and distrust in Ireland of British conduct and British utterances. May I make the sincere plea to the British authorities to desist forthwith and accept that the Parliament of Ireland has expressed its denunciation of the use of force to achieve Irish unity and to accept that resolution in good faith and accepting it, if they believe there is any reason to suspect that ships are being used for the illegal importation of arms, then to convey the information to our authorities who I feel certain will make sure that no Irish vessel, no Irish plane, no Irish port, no Irish vehicle or no Irish hand will be permitted to send arms for illegal use for the purpose of achieving Irish unity or for the purpose of provoking any section of the community in the north of Ireland against the other.
It seems to me, while it may seem to be a small thing, the owners of the vessels which have been interfered with and delayed, are entitled to compensation. It is quite an expensive procedure to delay a ship for an hour at sea. The sailors are entitled to be paid for their hours at sea. This requires the crew to be properly paid for the delays which take place. The running of the engines of a ship is quite an expensive business and it is no small matter in a crossing of about 20 miles if a ship is delayed for an hour. I appreciate that apparently the owners have not yet made any claim but we should encourage them to make this claim and the Government should ensure that the British authorities pay compensation in respect of the delays which have already taken place.
We have complete regard for the delicacy of the situation but we do not think that this means that we must not take any action. Action is called for not only on the diplomatic but, if necessary, on the naval and military levels. We look to the Government to take this action so that we will not have to suffer any longer the frustration and indignity to which we have been subjected in the last six months.
