asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will intercede with the Governor of Texas, USA in the case of Ms Karla Faye Tucker who is due to be executed at midnight Irish time; if he will consider asking the Governor to consider granting a further period within which a review of her case could be undertaken with the objective of averting the proposed execution; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3012/98]
Private Notice Questions. - Execution of Convicted US Prisoner.
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will join the Pope, the European Parliament, Amnesty International and the brother of one of the victims in seeking the lifting of the death penalty on Ms Karla Faye Tucker, who is due to be executed at midnight Irish time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3067/98]
I propose to take these questions together.
I inform the House that I conveyed today the following appeal to the Governor of Texas, Mr. George Bush:
Dear Governor,
I am appalled to hear that it is intended to proceed with the execution today of Ms Karla Faye Tucker. In my view, such executions are a setback for the goal we share of universal respect for human rights.
I appeal to you on humanitarian grounds to exercise your power to order a stay in the execution to allow the Supreme Court to hear Ms Tucker's appeal.
David Andrews, T.D.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ireland.
For the information of the House, the Governor of Texas has no power to commute the death sentence. This power is vested in the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles which yesterday agreed unanimously to refuse a clemency recommendation to the Governor. The action I have appealed to him to take is, therefore, the only course open to him, apart from signature of the death warrant.
The Deputies will be aware from my statement to the House on 23 October 1997 of the Government's total opposition to the use of the death penalty. I take this opportunity to reassure the House that at the 54th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, which begins on 16 March, Ireland will again take a strong position in favour of the worldwide abolition of capital punishment. It is our firm conviction that the abolition of the death penalty as an instrument of judicial punishment would contribute to the enhancement of human dignity and the progressive development of human rights throughout the world.
I thank the Minister for his reply. Has he taken other steps which might convince the Governor of the merits of his request, and has he received an indication of the likely response?
I remind the Deputy that it is now 10.20 a.m. in Texas and the execution is due to take place at 6 p.m. their time, midnight Irish time. I have asked our Embassy in Washington to convey our concerns to President Clinton.
Does the Minister agree it is barbaric that a woman may have poison injected into her veins and that her chance of getting one month's reprieve so that her case can be heard again depends on the electoral prospects of the Governor of Texas? Has the Minister raised with the American Ambassador and the American administration generally our concerns about the obscenity that a political campaign influences whether this woman lives or dies?
As a Minister representing a Government in one jurisdiction I would not wish to enter into a political contest in another jurisdiction, as suggested by the Deputy. However, I agree with his view that the death penalty in itself and the method by which this woman may be put to death this evening are obscene, to say the least.
Would the Minister reconsider his position on speaking to the American Ambassador, especially since this House agreed on 18 December 1997 a motion seeking to promote the universal moratorium on capital punishment, thus putting an onus on him to be pro-active in this regard? This would be the first woman to be executed by the State of Texas for 100 years and the Minister must be conscious that the House has committed itself to a moratorium on capital punishment. This puts a responsibility on him to be a little less laid back and more pro-active on this issue. The American Ambassador to Ireland is accessible to him and he should strongly put the case that we do not want this execution carried out. We want to ensure that what is agreed in the House will be followed up by a Minister in an appropriate way, rather than indulging in rhetoric without taking action which will have results.
I strongly object to the Deputy's use of the term "laid back" as regards my approach to this matter.
It is much too vigorous a term for the Minister.
That is another example of giving a dog a bad name. I have already attempted to contact the Governor of Texas, Mr. George Bush, and the President of the United States. As for contacting the American Ambassador, I can undertake to make a telephone call this afternoon or possibly to call her in to add a third string to my efforts to prevent this execution.
I am not the only person to object strenuously to the prospective execution of this unfortunate woman. The Pope and the European Parliament are among many prominent people and institutions throughout the world to add their voices to this call. We are not alone in this. Many others are strenuously objecting to this person's impending death in these circumstances.
Given that just over seven hours remain before the proposed execution, will the Minister, in addition to the steps he has already taken, contact a number of prominent Irish-American politicians with a view to their using influence with the Governor to grant a stay of execution?
I am grateful to Deputies for their rather belated suggestions. Those who have already urged Governor Bush to reprieve Ms Tucker include Pope John Paul II, the European Parliament, the Rev. Pat Robertson of the Christian Coalition which favours the death penalty, the brother of the woman she murdered, the detective who arrested her, the former prosecutor, prison guards, Amnesty International and thousands of anti-capital punishment activists in the United States. We are dealing with a capital punishment culture. A recent opinion poll in the United States indicated that 70 per cent of those polled wanted the retention of capital punishment.
That is what has to be changed.
Of course.
These people complain about breaches of human rights around the world.
There is no point in accusing me. We are a small democracy and have added our voice to the list of prominent persons and countries who have already objected to what is happening. There is not very much more I can do, bar contacting the American ambassador. I do not think my efforts will be rewarded with the life of this individual.
Will the Minister say if his letter to Governor Bush was sent before or after the question was tabled by Deputy Durkan and me? Has the Government been proactive in raising concerns about this case? Is it the Minister's intention to find out what other EU foreign Ministers have done and if they intend to let their views be known to Britain in relation to this case? Will the Minister agree that the question of whether this woman has poison injected into her veins swings on whether the Governor of Texas runs for election and if he could give her a one month reprieve he is fearful that he would be seen as being soft? Therefore, this is not only a matter of human rights, it is a cynical question of the life of one person possibly being sacrificed because of the political ambition of one other person. This is what is at the centre of this case. Will the Minister make that case forcefully to the US ambassador and raise it with his EU General Affairs Council colleagues?
In response to the first part of the Deputy's question, I sent a fax to the governor's mansion this morning which, I am sure was among many thousands of other faxes; I assume his fax machine was jammed. In the circumstances I cannot add to what I have done in that regard. I have been in touch with our Embassy in Washington which has brought our concerns to the attention of President Clinton and again I will be contacting the American ambassador. So far as the political career of Governor Bush is concerned, it would be inappropriate to comment on what he considers to be his position in respect of this unfortunate woman's predicament.
Surely President Clinton would have some influence with the Governor of Texas. Given the good relationship between the State and the President of the United States, in relation to Northern Ireland we can simply lift the phone and talk to the highest person in the land. Will the Minister use that phone to convey to President Clinton the strong feelings being expressed here on the barbarity that is about to be enacted on a woman? This undercuts the reputation of the United States around the world in relation to human life and human rights.
I have been in touch with our ambassador in Washington and I have asked him to convey our deep concerns in respect of the upcoming execution. There is nothing more I can do in that regard
Will the Minister lift the phone?
Given that the parole board, appointed by Governor Bush, has not to date commuted any sentence, will the Minister convey directly to President Clinton on behalf of the Government our total abhorrence of the execution which is about to take place?
That is what I am doing through the channel of our Embassy in Washington. Our concerns and those of the country will be conveyed to him as a matter of urgency.
I welcome the fact that the Minister has undertaken to meet the American ambassador.
I did not say that. I will contact her by telephone.
I thought the Minister said he would contact or summon her in. With all due respect, it would be appropriate for the Minister to invite her to meet him on such a serious matter as this. When he meets her he should request her to contact the President of the United States directly. It would be very important for American politics to be able to deliver the life of a woman and ensure she is not executed in a few hours' time. If the Minister were to meet the ambassador and request that she contact the President directly — as she does frequently — this would have an impact along with all the other efforts being made.
I undertake to communicate the views of the House and the Deputies to the American ambassador. I understand 144 executions have been carried out in Texas since 1976, including 37 last year. Those 37 executions were half the total number in the US in 1997. That is the difficulty and the mindset we are dealing with.
Is the Minister aware there are approximately 3,000 people on death row in the United States, that only half the states, at most, have the death penalty in their criminal code and that there is no evidence that violent crime is any less in the states which do not have the death penalty? In other words, there is no evidence that the death penalty has a beneficial effect in reducing crime and it is also considered to be an ineffective method of punishment in terms of deterrents. Will the Minister convey these arguments not just to the President but to the governors of the states which have the death penalty on their statute book? US evidence shows it does not work.
I agree with Deputy Bruton's point of view. There are some 3,300 people on death row in the United States, which includes six women. Gender is not taken account of in the case of Ms Tucker, which is unfortunate. So far as the Deputy's suggestion about contacting politicians in various other states in the United States is concerned, I undertake to do that.
Will the Minister agree that since this is the first woman to be executed in many years——
Since the Civil War.
——it is setting a precedent for a whole new stream of executions? This is why the Government should make a point of protesting about it. We should do everything in our power to ensure the governor who has the power to reprieve the woman concerned for a month should use it to allow her case to be reviewed further.
I agree with the Deputy but the prospects of success are remote. I will pursue the avenues open to me. I will contact the American ambassador as a matter of urgency and convey the views expressed by the Members opposite.
Given that Karla Faye Tucker is pondering on what is likely to happen in the short time remaining and notwithstanding the efforts he has made, will the Minister identify other politicians of like mind in the United States who might be in a position to exert some influence on the governor of Texas?
Anti capital punishment activists throughout the United States, including politicians, have protested to Governor Bush about the impending execution of Karla Faye Tucker. The Leader of the Opposition, Deputy John Bruton, asked me to contact politicians of like mind in the United States. I undertake to do so but in relation to the immediate problem, tragically, the case rests. Many organisations and individuals have protested but it appears the governor concerned will not change his mind.
Written Answers follow Adjournment Debate.