agusDonncha Ó Gallchobhair den Aire Dlí agus Cirt an eol dó nach bhfuil an stádas ceart á fháil ag an nGaeilge sna cúirteanna sna limistéir Ghaeltachta.
14. D'fhiafraigh
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Stádas na Gaeilge.
13. D'fhiafraigh
agusDonncha Ó Gallchobhair den Aire Dlí agus Cirt an bhfuil sé sásta go bhfuil an leagan Gaeilge den reachtaíocht uilig a tháinig os comhair Tithe an Oireachtais ar fáil sna tithe cúirte agus sna stáisiúin Gharda sa Ghaeltacht faoi láthair.
15. D'fhiafraigh
agusDonncha Ó Gallchobhair den Aire Dlí agus Cirt an bhfuil a dhea-mhéin ar fáil lena chinntiú go neartófar agus go spreagfar úsáid na Gaeilge imeasc oifigigh a Roinne sna limistéir Ghaeltachta.
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 13, 14 and 15 together.
The Deputies can be assured of my goodwill towards the use of Irish by all officers of my Department including, of course, those who serve in Gaeltacht areas. The Department actively co-operate with Gaeleagras na Seirbhíse Poiblí by facilitating and encouraging participation by officers in the activities of that body which include courses in Irish and social activities through the medium of Irish.
I am satisfied that court offices and Garda stations in Gaeltacht areas and elsewhere are supplied with such copies of Acts of the Oireachtas as are required for their work. The bound volumes of the Acts, which of course contain both the Irish and English versions, are supplied to all court officers, primarily for the use of the Judiciary.
The conduct of court business is in every case a matter solely for the presiding judge or justice and accordingly it is not open to me to comment on the status given to Irish in the conduct of court proceedings.
An bhfuil an tAire ag rá gur mar seo atá an scéal? Is the Minister saying that what happens in court in a Gaeltacht area in relation to language and general procedure in court is a matter for a district justice involved? I understood that the question that what happened in relation to the use of language in a court depended on the individuals involved?
That is so. If an individual wants to have his case heard through Irish it is his right. It is a matter for the court as to how the arrangements are made for the hearing of it in that language.
I took it that the Minister in his reply stated that the district justice in a particular area decided what procedures should be followed in court.
As I understand it, a citizen has the right to have his case heard in Irish if he so wishes. How much of the case is conducted in Irish will then be a matter for the district justice in so far as interpretation is concerned.
Is the Minister aware of several cases, particularly in my own Gaeltacht area, where a district justice refused to hear a case through Irish?
I am not aware of such a case.
Will the Minister accept that it would not be unreasonable in respect of the appointment of any district justice to the Gaeltacht area that he should be required to have a knowledge of Irish sufficient to allow him to carry out his duties through Irish?
As far as possible that objective is sought, but that is not the end of it. Other people participating in the case, such as solicitors, may not be native speakers, and interpreters will be needed. In reply to the Deputy's question, as far as possible justices with a knowledge of Irish are assigned to the appropriate districts.
Should we differentiate between what might be regarded as a private individual, the solicitor, as against the State servant, the district justice, in the matter of his being obliged to have facilities in the Irish language?
As far as is practicable justices with a knowledge of Irish are assigned to Gaeltacht areas, but the point I make is that that does not guarantee that the proceedings will be entirely in Irish because other participants in the case may not have sufficient Irish.
Can the Minister state the number of district justices operating in Gaeltacht areas and state the number that are fluent in the Irish language?
I have not got those particulars.
The Minister is aware that there are no more than five or six Gaeltacht areas in the country. I am not happy or satisfied, nor do I believe the Minister is satisfied, that the district justices operating there are able to conduct their cases through Irish.
I do not know how many Gaeltacht areas there are in the country. That is not the question. The question is how many district court districts cover Gaeltacht areas; there might not be as many. What the level of fluency of any district justice is, I cannot say.
Has a garda giving evidence to a district justice in court in any part of the country, particularly in a Gaeltacht area, a constitutional right to give his evidence through the medium of Irish if he so desires?
Yes.
Is the Minister aware that a certain district justice instructed a member of the Garda Síochána to give his evidence in English and that he would not allow him to give his evidence in Irish in a court in the Gaeltacht where English had never been heard before?
I am not so aware.
Surely the Minister is concerned about this matter. It has received a lot of publicity over the past year. There is great concern that the Minister is appointing district justices to operate in Gaeltacht areas who do not have a competent knowledge of the language and who are implementing their own personal views by downgrading the language in front of the Gaeltacht people who attend these courts?
I do not accept that any member of the Judiciary would downgrade the language.
Question No. 16. I have given the Deputy some latitude.
Will the Minister accept that a district justice gave such an instruction to a member of the Garda Síochána and deprived him of his constitutional right?
Order, order.
I am not aware of that.
Order.
Will the Minister investigate it?
If the Deputy gives me particulars I will find out the facts.
Order. No. 16 please.