‘Participation in battlegroups must be voluntary’

IRELAND’S role in the new EU Battlegroups could be put in doubt if a row over mandatory participation is not sorted out, it emerged yesterday.

The association, representing rank-and-file members of the Defence Forces, yesterday warned it would go to the courts if necessary to ensure members were not compelled to serve in Battlegroups.

PDFORRA, the association for soldiers, airmen and sailors, asserted that participation in overseas missions was voluntary, except where it was a UN peacekeeping operation.

The association said the Defence (Amendment) Act 2006 and comments by Defence Minister Willie O’Dea seemed to suggest existing members could be compelled to serve in all overseas missions, including training missions for EU Battlegroups prior to UN approval.

“Whereas there is a basis for saying that these overseas activities have always been part and parcel of the Permanent Defence Forces — this has been so on a voluntary basis,” said PDFORRA general secretary Gerry Rooney.

“Personnel involved in such activities have always done so on a voluntary basis and PDFORRA will pursue all means to defend the voluntary rights of its present members on this matter.”

He added: “We will defend that right in the courts if necessary.”

He said hopefully they could clarify the matter with the Department of Defence.

“The department seems unclear at the moment, but the minister in a speech said he can do that.”

Mr Rooney said all members can be sent on UN peacekeeping missions, and only those who joined after 1993 could be sent on UN peace enforcement missions. Members who joined before 1993 only participate on a voluntary basis.

He said comments made by the minister that he would consider sympathetically applications by PDFORRA for an increase in the overseas allowance would help boost the number of volunteers.

Mr Rooney also welcomed comments by the minister that he would consider sympathetically calls by the association to implement the original provision in the white paper on defence and have 250 people in training, in addition to the Defence Forces’ strength of 10,500.

The general secretary said this would allow the force to meet growing overseas commitments.

Mr Rooney also called on the Government to check that all parties to the recent conflict in Lebanon would honour the UN mandate in the country so as to ensure the safety of the 150-strong Irish force due to arrive there at the end of this month.

He said there was a risk to the Irish force who may serve on general security duties in addition to their core task of providing protection for a Finnish engineering corps.