Council of Europe backs call for US plane searches
The Council of Europe yesterday said it backed the position taken by the IHRC in wanting gardaí to carry out their own inspections of US private and military aircraft for the possible irregular transfer of detainees via Irish airports.
The IHRC last month asked the Government to seek agreement with Washington to inspect such aircraft "as a matter of urgency".
The latest comments by the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights Alvaro Gil-Robles come against a background of continuing concern that some US aircraft landing at Shannon Airport are being used to convey prisoners for interrogation.
Pressure on the Government to carry out inspection of such aircraft has also continued to grow as it emerged earlier this week that 333,000 US military troops passed through Shannon last year a figure which represents a daily average of 900 soldiers.
"Given the widespread allegations of such transfers through numerous Council of Europe countries, I very much welcome the attention the IHRC is paying to this issue and support its calls for greater transparency," said Mr Gil-Robles.
In a letter to the IHRC president, Maurice Manning, he pointed out all members of the organisation had a responsibility to ensure their territory was not used for illicit purposes, including human rights violations.
In cases of doubt in relation to extraordinary rendition flights, countries should be able to determine the status of passengers on board such aircraft, said Mr Gil-Robles.
"The IHRC's proposal that the Irish Government seek the agreement of the US authorities to inspect aircraft would certainly facilitate this," he said.
The Strasbourg-based organisation has already begun its own inquiry into allegations about extraordinary rendition flights in Europe.
Mr Gil-Robles said he welcomed the commitment of the Irish government to co-operate fully with its investigation.
Meanwhile, Labour's Foreign Affairs spokesperson Michael D Higgins said the Irish public would support any demand that the
Government take immediate steps to inspect all aircraft suspected of carrying prisoners for so-called "extraordinary rendition".
He claimed such flights were in clear breach of international law and conventions.
"It is clear that the Government's position of unquestioningly accepting 'the assurances of a friendly nation' is not sufficient to meet our obligations under international law," he said.
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said the Government had already informed the IHRC it would be responding more fully to its resolution in due course.
He said Mr Gil-Robles was also aware of the Government's "complete opposition" to the practice of extraordinary renditions.
The spokesperson said it remained the case that the US had given "repeated, clear and explicit assurances" that no prisoners had been transported through Ireland for any purpose.
