I thank you for allowing me to raise the very important and serious case of Fr. Paddy Ryan of Rossmore, Goolds Cross, County Tipperary, who is at present in the prison of St. Gilles in Brussels awaiting a decision from the Belgian Minister for Justice to a formal request from the British Government for Fr. Ryan's extradition on the by now infamous charge of conspiring to murder persons unknown. If it is in order, my colleague, Senator Tony McKenna from North Tipperary, has intimated that he wishes to be associated with supporting this motion and I hope there will be sufficient time to allow him to speak about this case.
As a result of this request from the British authorities, Fr. Ryan decided, after careful consideration, to go on a hunger strike in the knowledge and the belief, and from public references to similar charges preferred against other Irish citizens in Great Britain, that the likelihood of his receiving a fair trial on such an emotive charge was very slim indeed. It does not please me, as somebody who abhors everything the Provisional IRA stand for, to have to put that type of comment on the record of this House. It is a fact, and anybody who has read all or even part of what has been published by the English media since this case began in Belgium, will realise that there would be a very slim chance of Fr. Ryan getting a fair trial if he is extradited to Britain on this type of charge because already he has been found guilty by some of the English Press and media on facts which are not sustainable.
Fr. Ryan's family, in particular his brother Joe Ryan and his wife, and Fr. Paddy's sister, have visited Fr. Ryan in this Belgian jail. Visiting there is extremely restricted because Fr. Ryan has been in solitary confinement for up to 22 hours a day since he was imprisoned. I want to place on the record of this House my appreciation of the help that has, at my request been extended to the Ryan family, by the Minister and by officers in his Department of Foreign Affairs who have helped, by their intervention, and ensured that Fr. Ryan's family had proper facilities for a personal visit to Fr. Ryan to discuss with him in detail the full implications of continuing his hunger strike. Fr. Ryan has accepted the consular assistance offered to him by our Embassy in Belgium. It is appropriate that credit should be given to the Department for their interest and their recognition of the seriousness of this case involving an Irish citizen.
I am extremely concerned that Fr. Ryan's hunger strike, which today is entering its 21st day could lead to a very serious deterioration in his health and could lead eventually to his death, particularly as this priest is already suffering from malaria which he contracted during his 15 years in the service of the foreign missions in Africa. I am told by his brother that he has lost up to two stone in weight, and because of that his age and the fact that he is suffering from this dreaded disease contracted on the missions while he was with the Pallotine Fathers, I am extremely conscious of how important every day is.
During his time as a missionary in Africa, he was identified with political leaders, with the poor, the needy and the oppressed. We know that oppression in parts of Africa can be economic and political. We are all acutely aware of the level of political oppression in parts of Africa. It came as no surprise to anybody in Tipperary when this priest returned to Ireland to retire after an extended period in the missions. He visited the North and he saw at first hand the deprivation caused for families when the breadwinners are jailed for political offences. The political situation in the North has led other strong Church leaders to appeal in this case, and they have even criticised the system which leads to deprivation for the dependants of people who are imprisoned for long periods. Every other day we have comments from leading Church figures like Fr. Wilson, and as late as this morning when on our national airwaves Fr. Faul gave a lengthy interview dealing with prisoners and their dependants in the North.
It is nothing new for a priest, particularly a priest who like many of us considered himself a Nationalist, to have an interest in people who are underprivileged and oppressed politically. These are the same people Fr. Ryan would have given his time, and had given his time, to help by funding them and by fund raising for them in Ireland and throughout Europe. I am sure he has often condemned the British authorities in the North of Ireland in particular and many of the sentiments he expressed have been echoed by all of us and by many other people in all political parties in the south of Ireland in particular. None of these comments would ever, we consider, warrant a request from the British jurisdiction for our extradition.
All of us would admit that if Fr. Ryan has been guilty of anything it is of issuing statements in condemnation of the British authorities for some of the actions in the North of Ireland. These statements would be re-echoed by many of us and, certainly, by all the political parties in this country. None of these statements, we would consider, would warrant a request by the British Government for our extradition. We must bear in mind also that a previous Irish Government made funds available through the Houses of the Oireachtas to help the very same people for whom Fr. Paddy Ryan has been fund-raising.
However, he was arrested in Belgium on 3 June for offences which, to my knowledge and my information, have been dropped by the Belgian authorities. We would contend, and have argued — and he has agreed — that if the Belgian authorities believed that he had a case to answer for offences committed in Belgium, Fr. Ryan was prepared to stand trial in that country on them. When he was arrested and these offences were read out against him, both the British and Irish authorities at that time stated publicly that they had no interest whatsoever in Fr. Paddy Ryan. Then, three months after his arrest the British authorities sought extradition on conspiracy charges based on suppositions and generalities.
I saw a copy of the original extradition warrant and the grounds that were shown on that warrant were associé des malfaiteurs which, translated roughly into English would mean “associating with undesirables”. Any of us who know anything about the role of a priest in difficult circumstances know that they all deal with undesirables of one kind or another, whether they are drug addicts, alcoholics, drop-outs or whatever. I do not think any of us could condemn a priest for being involved with people, particularly those in need. However, he was represented, when the case was presented, by three eminent Belgian lawyers, Georges' Henri Beauthier, Jacques' Hamaide and Luk Walleyn. He was also represented by Martine Schemama from Paris, Lord Gifford and Michael Fisher from England and Mr. Elio Malocco from Dublin. Quite a number of eminent lawyers have taken on his case on the basis and the principle of common justice and they have, I think proven their case through the actual procedure, which is not a legal procedure in the Belgian context, but is a type of forum which considers the application from another member state of the European Community.
To my knowledge this forum recommended a particular course of action in the case of Fr. Ryan. The original application has since been changed by the British Government to a charge on which it is most difficult to prove one's innocence and that is the charge of conspiracy to murder persons unknown. The panel which have considered this British request have refused Fr. Ryan political asylum. I believe that they have recommended to the Belgian Minister for Justice not to accede to the British request for extradition. I now respectfully request, and hope that the House would agree with me, that the Minister should use his good offices with the Belgian Government directly to intervene and express our wishes in this very serious case. I am suggesting this type of formal action because it is not a court procedure and would not be considered as intervening in the jurisdiction of another country since the decision finally about Fr. Ryan on the application will be made at a political level in the Belgian Parliament.
The wishes that I have expressed here have been subscribed to by all political parties in South Tipperary and by elected representatives from North and South Ridings in Tipperary at a recent joint meeting of the two county councils and all other local authority bodies in the area. Unless Fr. Ryan is charged or found guilty of an offence committed in Belgium — for which we accept he should stand trial — we want this Irish priest freed and returned home to his family and his friends. I hope the Minister can assure this House that he will try to assist us in our efforts. I have used every possible means at my disposal to forward this cause. This week the International Secretariat of the Labour Party, which is associated with the Socialist group in Europe, are using their good offices to try to intervene at that level; but I think it is more appropriate that Government-to-Government communication should take place about our wishes for the return to Ireland of Fr. Paddy Ryan from Rossmore, Co. Tipperary. With that I will allow my colleague, Senator McKenna, to contribute.
