Ivana Bacik

Order of Business

Thursday, 15 December 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I agree with Senator O’Brien that we need a debate on the issues around the EU deal done last week and the question of whether we will have a referendum in the new year. I am delighted we will have the opportunity tomorrow, when the Minister of State, Deputy Creighton is here, to try to tease out the question of whether a referendum will be necessary and, if it is to be held, what it will be seen as. I did not hear the Minister for Finance’s initial comments, but I read the interview he gave to The Irish Times in which he says that the practical politics - the shorthand - will be whether we want to maintain Ireland’s position as a eurozone country. We need to tease out whether that is a correct interpretation of how it will be seen and that is a different question to the one as to the content of the referendum. We need more time to debate those issues.

I renew a call for a debate on an issue I raised earlier in the week, on Tuesday, on the ESRI-UCD report on changing family forms. This important report looks at the changing demographic in Ireland and the changing make-up of family and there are political consequences from this. One of these is the need for more flexible work practices and the case for paid paternity leave, even just for a short time, to enable fathers get greater recognition in the workplace. I seek a full debate on this in the new year. I noticed that during the debate on the Social Welfare Bill on Tuesday, the Minister, Deputy Burton, pointed out that the report has implications for social welfare policy and social protection and how payments will be made in the future. A debate on this would be very useful.

I also seek a debate on education. A report from the CSO today indicates that Ireland is joint first in the European Union for third level attainment among those aged between 25 and 34. Some 48% of these have a third level qualification, well above the EU average of one-third. This is interesting and a debate on the issue would be beneficial.

All of us will have huge concerns about the report from the historical inquiries team yesterday, on the Miami showband massacre in 1975, which showed the team found RUC special branch involvement. This is something we need to debate in the House.

STATEMENT BY SENATOR IVANA BACIK
 Labour Party Seanad leader and Spokesperson on Justice
Thursday 17th November 2011

SENATOR BACIK WELCOMES RELEASE OF
DR RAFAH NACHED IN SYRIA

Senator Ivana Bacik today welcomed the release of Dr. Rafah Nached, the Syrian psychoanalyst, who had been detained since 10th September by the Syrian authorities.

Senator Bacik had raised the plight of 66-year old Dr. Nached on a number of occasions in the Seanad, and had circulated a cross-party Motion calling for her release. Senator Bacik had said that it was outrageous to see Dr. Nached, the first female psychoanalyst in her country, being arrested and detained as she was about to board a Paris-bound flight at Damascus airport to attend the birth of her first grandchild.

In welcoming Dr. Nached’s release today, Senator Bacik said,
 
 

“The release of Dr. Nached is long overdue. Her detention was outrageous and it provoked an international outcry and a major campaign for her release. The Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore had called for her immediate release on 4th October, and had associated himself fully with the 23rd September statement calling for her release by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton. Other parliaments and Governments had similarly called for her release.”

“However, although Dr. Nached has now been released, many thousands of others have been arbitrarily detained in Syria, and many have been subjected to torture in custody. I call for an immediate end to the repression and violence of the Syrian people and will continue to press the Tanaiste and Government for further efforts to support the movement for democracy in Syria.”

ENDS

Order of Business

Tuesday, 15 November 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I welcome the Leader’s announcement that a cross-party motion has been agreed on the sentencing to death of Pastor Nadarkhani in Iran, which is helpful. I remind leaders of the other groups that I have e-mailed an updated wording of a motion on Syria and would be grateful for cross-party support on that motion, particularly in light of recent reports of further abuses and killings by the Syrian Government and the suspension of Syria by the Arab League in a really dramatic move. This is a sign of how serious have become developments and how seriously repressive is the regime there. In this context, I would be grateful for an early response to the motion on the continued detention of the Syrian psychoanalyst, Dr. Rafah Nashed. The motion has been broadened to take account of other developments and of the repression and violence that has been used by the Syrian Government against peaceful protesters who have been protesting for democracy. I hope this motion also can be taken on an agreed basis.

I ask the Leader for a debate on prison policy in Ireland in light of the publication of the capital expenditure plan last week, which showed that further spending on Thornton Hall has been deferred. While many Members will be quite glad of that, they also need to ascertain what other resourcing can be done to ensure, for example, the phasing out of the brutal slopping-out practices in Mountjoy Prison. I acknowledge work is ongoing in Mountjoy as many members of the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality will have seen in recent weeks. However, they need to know whether resources can be put in place to ensure that conditions in Mountjoy Prison will become better for inmates and staff alike, as well as to ascertain what plans are in place to move children out of St. Patrick’s Institution. The commitment in the programme for Government is to end the practice of detention of children, that is, those under 18, in St. Patrick’s Institution. However, those of us who visited recently saw that more than 30 children remain in detention there. In conclusion, I wish to inform colleagues that I will hold a seminar with Dr. Harry Kennedy and Ms Emily Logan, Ombudsman for Children, at 4.30 p.m. today in the AV room to discuss the conditions in St. Patrick’s Institution.

…I would be grateful for the support of colleagues of all parties on this issue. Again, it is a matter on which there was cross-party support in the last Seanad from both Government and Opposition parties.

Order of Business

Tuesday, 18 October 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I join with Senator MacSharry in calling for a debate on how to prevent a repeat of the incident with the apartment block in Donaghmede. It is an appalling outcome to see hundreds of people, including elderly people and families with young children, being put in most inappropriate and unsuitable accommodation for perhaps weeks or even longer because of the inadequate building and the failure to observe fire safety standards. I used the word “inadequate”, although it is a gross understatement. I understand from reading newspaper reports and from what Senator MacSharry said that the building was approved on the plans and that at design stage, it looked as if it would be compliant with fire and safety regulations. Clearly, the actual building differed significantly from the plans. It is an appalling outcome and there are huge questions to be answered.

We must look at how legislation can assist. Is any reform of legislation needed to ensure this cannot happen in the future? I agree with Senator MacSharry that perhaps the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government should attend the House. I have also asked the Minister of State with responsibility for housing to attend the House at an early date. There are issues in this regard with which he may also be able to deal.

A debate on the Keane report would be useful. Many others, including myself, have called for this already. I understand we will have that debate in early course.

Will the other group leaders let me know if they are willing to support a motion for cross-party support, that Seanad Éireann condemns the continued detention since 10 September of internationally renowned psychoanalyst, Dr. Rafah Nashed, by the Syrian Government, and which I have already circulated? I am very grateful to Senators Rónán Mullen and Jillian van Turnhout for assuring me of their support. Colleagues will recall that I have already raised this matter. It would be very appropriate for the Seanad to call on the Government to join with others, including the EU High Representative, Catherine Ashton, in calling for the immediate release of Dr. Rafah Nashed. The Governments of Argentina, Brazil and France have already called for her release and her continued detention in her in a women’s prison in Damascus is an appalling abuse of her human rights. It would be a useful exercise for us to call for her release and that of others arbitrarily detained by the Syrian regime.

In the context of an ongoing debate on the referendums, which is rather more muted than the debate on the presidential election, the Seanad debate on the Oireachtas committee referendum was a very good and an informative one. Is there some way of disseminating the speeches from that debate? I have sent them to anyone looking for information on the referendum. It would be a very good way to inform people about the content of that referendum.

Human Trafficking and Prostitution: Motion

Wednesday, 12 October 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, and thank and commend Senator Katherine Zappone and the other Independent Senators for bringing forward the motion. This is a very important debate that has been ongoing for some time, as acknowledged by the Minister of State and others. I also thank and commend the many NGOs which have been working on this issue for many years, notably Ruhama which has been working on the front line with women engaged in prostitution.

I commend the Turn Off the Red Light campaign which was commenced to bring to an end prostitution and sex trafficking in Ireland. Many of us, including the Minister of State, were present at the launch of the campaign in Buswells some time ago. The Labour Party is one of the 40 organisations which signed up to it. I am proud to represent the Labour Party, which fully supports the aim of ensuring the putting in place of legislation to criminalise the purchase of sex. All Members agree with the aim of the Independent Senators, which is to put forward a legislative model in Ireland that is robust, will work within our constitutional system and will ensure the same outcome that has been achieved in Sweden. Like other Members, I have read the ten-year evaluation of the Swedish legislation. I had been interested to ascertain how that model has worked and there were some highly positive and exciting findings, notably that street prostitution has halved in Sweden since the introduction of that legislation. Moreover, as others have mentioned, Norway has followed suit. However, as Senator Power acknowledged, it is vital to build a coalition on this issue and the success of the Turn off the Red Light campaign to date is that it has built a broad-based coalition of different groups comprising civil society groups, political parties, trade unions and so on. One must move forward with this united front to legislate in a way that will stand up within our system.

That said, it is understandable that many would have found the Government’s counter-motion and its wording somewhat disappointing in that it appears to suggest there is no sense of urgency in moving forward to the legislative model. I assure the Independent Senators in particular, as well as colleagues on the other side of the House, this is not the Government’s intention and certainly as far as the Labour Party is concerned, as the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, has stated, it will be pressing in government to ensure the introduction of this legislation. However, as the Minister of State also observed, one cannot simply transpose the exact same model from a very different legal system. Particular issues arise in this jurisdiction and one must ensure the legislation one introduces is robust. I speak as someone who has defended successfully some women accused of offences under the 1993 Act under which, as the figures demonstrate, it is extremely difficult to prosecute.

The Minister of State has clarified the wording of the motion and has assured Members there is a sense of urgency at Government level and the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, has already taken some concrete steps to further matters. On Monday, he will publish the Dignity Project report arising out of his examination of the Swedish law and I understand that within six months, either the Minister himself or the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, will return to this House to report on progress that has been made. The Minister of State has referred to submissions being invited, which would be useful. The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, of which Senator Bradford, other Senators and I are members, would be a useful forum in which to take submissions on potential models for the legislation and on how the legislation might be framed. The joint committee is doing this at present in respect of the vetting bureau Bill and will do so with regard to the withholding of information Bill. It is carrying out similar exercises on legislation that have complex drafting aspects and would be a useful forum. I am reassured by the Minister of State’s statement to the effect there will be urgency in this regard and the Government will move forward in line with Labour Party policy and the intentions of the Turn off the Red Light campaign.

I will comment briefly on the history of legislation in this regard in Ireland. It has tended, the 1993 Act follows this model, to criminalise only the public display of the sale of sex and not the sale or purchase of sex itself directly and the Minister of State has referred to this. Our legislation prohibits loitering or soliciting for the purpose of prostitution, which of course means that those who seek to purchase sex, the clients, are criminalised and in some cases usually are prosecuted with more frequency than the women themselves. However, this is of course only where loitering or soliciting is done in public and there are quite difficult evidential barriers to get over when prosecuting. The origins of the Act date back to 19th-century law in which criminalisation of prostitution again was based on public order legislation. I refer to the Vagrancy Act 1824, which penalised the common prostitutes and to the horrendous Contagious Diseases Acts 1864 to 1869, which provided for compulsory incarceration for prostitutes.

The 1993 Act, which was introduced to try to reform the law, certainly was a great improvement on what had gone before when some horrifically repressive legislation had been in place. It did at least create gender-neutral offences for the first time and no longer simply criminalised the women. Moreover, as the Minister of State noted, it also introduced offences in respect of brothel-keeping, as well as offences that were much more protective of those who were engaged in prostitution. Unfortunately, however, it retained those traditional elements of loitering and soliciting and clearly the main thrust of the legislation was to try to control the display of prostitution in public. This concern perhaps was based on a political concern to protect neighbourhoods and so-called respectable society from this public display. The trafficking legislation, which was passed much more recently, shows the change in thinking and is much more concerned about protecting the victim. However, some evidential difficulties have also been identified with this legislation. This is also perhaps a consequence of the Supreme Court judgment in the CC case, with which some of us disagreed fundamentally, which overturned the strict liability offence of unlawful carnal knowledge and provided that a defence must be present where someone states he or she made a mistake as to the age of the underage child. This may be an issue that must be grappled with in framing a Swedish-style law prohibiting solely the purchase of sex or in other words, the Swedish model of criminalising the buyers that tackles demand rather than supply.

As the Government counter-motion, the Independent Senators and everyone else acknowledge, it is of course not simply about legislation and other ways must also be considered to tackle demand in particular, and to seek to end exploitation. I note the Turn off the Red Light campaign and others have been looking at ways of closing down telephone lines or websites because the manifest advertising of telephone lines or websites is perhaps the most obvious proof of prostitution. The Swedish evaluation demonstrates the potential that lies in the model being used there to criminalise the clients and to focus on demand. It also demonstrates a way forward away from the old model, on which Ireland has been far too reliant in the past, of criminalising only public display in criminalising loitering and soliciting in a public order sense. All Members are united in their desire to see a fundamental shift in the law away from the emphasis on public order and towards protection of the victim and a recognition of those engaged in prostitution as victims themselves, be they victims of trafficking or of exploitation even if they have not been trafficked. This is the great merit of the Swedish legislation and is what we must replicate in Ireland. However, the Government side can assure Members on both sides of the House that all are united in that aim. It is in this spirit that I second the amendment and am greatly reassured by that to which the Minister of State has committed on the record of this House.

Order of Business

27^th September 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I wish to renew a call to the Leader for a further debate on the arts in the presence of the Minister, Deputy Deenihan, who has promised to attend. I do so particularly in light of the great success of culture night last Friday. It was a huge success nationwide with a record number of institutions, including Leinster House, opening their doors. It was a real piece of good news.

On a completely different note, I welcome the good news that women in Saudi Arabia now have the vote. This is a very important step forward for democracy internationally and it is worth Members noting it here.

On a less positive note, the Amnesty International report, In Plain Sight, which was published yesterday, also deserves debate in this House, given the insight it provides into the failures by successive Governments and the institutional church in respect of the terrible abuse of children over the years.

Order of Business

21^st September 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I join Senator O’Brien in expressing concern about the rumour, and it is only a rumour at this stage, of prospective job losses at Aviva. The trickle of rumour leaves the employees in Aviva in an appalling position of uncertainty. Coming on the heels of the TalkTalk announcement, it gives rise to grave concern. We in the Labour group will have private Members’ time next week when we will seek to address this issue of big companies pulling out and leaving our workers in the lurch, particularly at such short notice.

I wish to take up a point raised by Senator Darragh O’Brien on Palestinian statehood. There are no mixed messages here. What the Tánaiste is seeking to do is to change the EU position because the Irish position - the Labour Party and the Government position - has always been supportive of Palestinian demands. Senator O’Brien and his colleagues will see that the Government motion, No. 14, states that Seanad Éireann reaffirms the long-standing support of the Irish Government and people for the establishment of a Palestinian state. It is more nuanced because we are approaching such a—-

Senator Darragh O’Brien:     Motion No. 4 is much clearer.

Senator Ivana Bacik:     As the Senator is well aware, we are seeking to do the best we can to support the Palestinian people’s demands. Many of us individually signed the Sudaca advertisement in The Irish Times.

Senator Darragh O’Brien:     As we did.

Senator Ivana Bacik:     Many of the Labour Senators, myself included, and Deputies signed it. That is a long-standing position that I and my party hold and that the Tánaiste is seeking to promote in government.

Senator Darragh O’Brien:     We still do not know whether we are going to support the Palestinian call.

Senator Ivana Bacik:     We want to achieve an EU common position on that issue. That is a goal worth achieving.

Senator Thomas Byrne:     Why can we not take the lead on it?

An Cathaoirleach:     No interruptions please.

Senator Thomas Byrne:     Protect the Government.

Senator Ivana Bacik:     The Government is seeking to be careful about this, to promote the Palestinian cause in a way that is diplomatic and that tries to bring the other EU countries with us. If we cannot do that, then obviously we have to look at it again. The Tánaiste has been very fair about that.

Today is September blue day. I am not wearing blue myself - just to rub it in to my colleagues from Kerry - and although they may feel a bitter about it, I know some of them are wearing blue.

Senator Marie Moloney:     It sits very hard but I will do it.

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I am delighted that Senator Moloney is wearing blue today even though I am sure it goes against the grain. It is worthwhile that all of us support blue day, an initiative to promote men’s cancer awareness. There has been a great deal of positive outcomes from the pink day for breast cancer. Research shows that women generally tend to be much more proactive about looking after their health. This is a good opportunity to promote men’s cancer awareness, to support the Irish Cancer Society, which is having a briefing at 1 p.m. today, and to show our support by wearing blue. It is also an opportunity to show our support for the Dubs, if that was also necessary.

Order of Business

Wednesday 14^th September 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I join others in welcoming colleagues back. I hope that everyone has had a break over the summer and is ready for the busy and challenging term that lies ahead in which we all hope the Seanad will play a productive and valuable role and in which we will see further progress with the procedural reforms we have begun to make. The Leader referred to the format today for questions and answers with the Minister, Deputy Bruton, which I think we found to be a more valuable way of interacting with Ministers in this House when we had the Minister, Deputy Coveney, in previously. We also need to bring forward the reforms on public consultation and on inviting speakers, with which I know we will proceed.

We all look forward to the debates we will have today on jobs and innovation, tomorrow on transport, next week on the arts, and also on the important legislation, some of which carries a good deal of urgency, particularly the legislation on the referenda on judicial pay and on committee powers. In the context of the job creation debate, given the events of recent weeks, it is worth expressing sympathy with the workers in TalkTalk in Waterford at the closure of the plant and the manner in which it was announced, an issue which Senator Landy and others will raise this afternoon in the House.

Another momentous event that happened over the break was the tenth anniversary of 9/11. It would be useful to have a debate in this House at a future date, either with the Tánaiste or an invited international speaker, on the legacy of 9/11, on the international movement for democracy that we have seen develop this year and which has been called the Arab Spring, and on what we in this House and in this country can do to support those movements for democracy that are fighting so hard in Libya, Syria, Bahrain and other places and that are being suppressed brutally in some of those places. That would be a valuable way to honour the legacy of the many who died in 9/11.

Order of Business

Tuesday 19^th July 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik: The Labour Party Ministers of State in the Department of Health have attended this House on a number of occasions, and I think Senator O’Brien will acknowledge that.

Senator Darragh O’Brien: Yes. The Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, was in the House last week.

Senator Ivana Bacik: The Ministers of State, Deputies Kathleen Lynch and Róisín Shortall, have attended the House on numerous occasions. I apologise to Senator O’Brien for the delay on the Palestine motion. We will get back to him on that today. It took a little time toing and froing.

I commend the Leader and the Committee on Procedure and Privileges on Nos. 1 and 2 on the Order Paper. Both are noteworthy developments and changes to the business of the Seanad which will make our business much more relevant and effective in the coming term. As colleagues will see, the first change we have made is that with the leave of the House, representatives and persons in public and civic life may attend and be heard in the Seanad. The impetus for that came largely from the Independent nominees groups and we should acknowledge that. However, all of us on the Committee on Procedure and Privileges were very anxious to see it facilitated and that we would be able to hear from individuals outside the Seanad who would be able to come in and inform our debate. That will strengthen the quality of our debate.

The other change concerns the Seanad Public Petitions Committee which already exists under our Standing Orders but which we are now activating through the new terms we have adopted on the SPPC. I am very optimistic that will really change the way we do business for the better.

Will the Leader arrange a debate on the continuing fallout from the News of the World scandal and crisis? It has become a full blown crisis not only in Britain but internationally as it has affected News International and media business worldwide. It was very sad to hear of a death in England which seems to have followed from it. There is also continuing fallout in terms of resignations of senior police officers as well as News International officers.

It should generate debate in this House on two particular issues. One is an issue on which a number of us in the Labour Party have called for debate, namely, the ownership of the media and the fact it should not be concentrated in the hands of one individual to such an extent that he or she feels he or she can abuse power in the way Rupert Murdoch did.

Today’s hearings in the House of Commons should generate some debate in this House on the powers of Oireachtas committees. The programme for Government states that we should strengthen Oireachtas committees. The House of Commons committee is very much in the news today and it will call before it not only the senior members of News International but also senior police officers. We need to look at how we can strengthen the powers of our committees to ensure they have that level of scrutiny over individuals and officers.

Order of Business

12^th July 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik: I support Senator O’Brien’s call for a cross-party motion in the House on Palestine. It would be a suitable topic for a cross-party motion; the Labour Party would fully support it. The idea first mooted by Senator Quinn is good and this is a good week to do it, given the visit this week of Dr. Sha’ath.

We all might predict the type of questions we will ask Mr. Buzek, the President of the European Parliament. Senator O’Brien has already alluded to that. It is an auspicious day with the positive announcement on interest rates but it is worrying that this appears to have been precipitated by the news from Italy and concerns about that country’s debt levels. Some of us might frame our questions in the context of what will happen in the eurozone generally.

I again ask the Leader to arrange a debate on media ethics. Since last week, when I and others raised the issue of the News of the World, matters have moved swiftly. I doubt that any of us expected or anticipated the announcement that the News of the World would close. Many honest journalists lost their jobs as a result. It appears to have been a rather cynical move by Mr. Rupert Murdoch to try to save his bid for the takeover of BSkyB, which now appears unlikely to be successful. It has become a full-blown political scandal in Britain and has serious implications for the British Government. In Ireland, there is a need to debate media ethics to try to forestall any news that these underhand and illegal tactics have spread to Irish newspapers. News International has a big hold on the Irish newspaper market with both The Sun and the The Sunday Times. News of the despicable and illegal attempts to get material on Mr. Gordon Brown and his family should be a warning for us to ensure that these tactics are not used in Ireland. I hope we can have a debate on this issue.

I seek a debate on the future of universities. In that context, I congratulate Trinity College which has been named among the leading universities in the world in the latest QS world university rankings. Social sciences feature in the top 100 for each of the listed disciplines. I confess a certain self interest in this regard given that the law school in Trinity College is in the top 100. Trinity College is also the only Irish university to make it into the top 50 for sociology, politics and international studies. That is a remarkable achievement in view of the level of cutbacks the third level sector has faced in recent times. A debate early in the next session on the future of the university sector would be very useful.