Courts must be free of intimidation

In the midst of the public anger over the recent developments on the crime scene, it is important that there is a measured and intelligent response to what has been happening, not a knee-jerk reaction.

The ministerial proposal that statements of evidence could be admitted even after they have been withdrawn or contradicted by their authors is understandable in certain circumstances.

It is vital, however, that there should be corroborative evidence such as video and sound tapes to show the circumstances in which any questionable statement was originally made. Hence it is important that all interviews should be taped.

The Government has been promising to implement a taping system for the past 20 years, but now the Department of Justice insists that the system is fully operational in 130 garda stations around the country and that some 220 interview rooms have the necessary facilities.

Following the murder of Veronica Guerin, the public outcry led to the formation of the Criminal Assets Bureau. This proved enormously effective in a number of respects, with the result that there is a natural public desire for a constructive response to recent developments.

Of course, the Government’s response to the killing of the two gardaí last year by so-called joyriders was not nearly so constructive. It promised a new detention unit for 14- and 15-year-olds at St Patrick’s Institution, but this has proved as elusive as many of the election promises of the Government parties.

The plans of a Dáil committee hearing representations from all the interested groups, including spokespeople on civil liberties, certainly affords an opportunity of enlisting broad support.

Unfortunately, Minister for Justice Michael McDowell has been behaving in a confrontational manner, in which he appears not to care about public opinion, or even the opinions of those civil servants on whom the successful implementation of new legislation is dependent.

Earlier this year, for instance, he was threatening to jail gardaí for talking to journalists. Instead of striving to enlist the full help and co-operation of the Garda Síochána, he seemed bent on some kind of confrontation.

There is no doubt whatever that we are facing a very serious situation in which there is a public perception that criminal gangs are able to act outside the law with impunity. It has long been recognised that it is not only important that justice should be done, but also that it should be seen to be done. This is clearly not the current situation.

A measured and intelligent response is needed to recent developments, but it is important that we learn from our own history. Many people will remember the questionable behaviour on the part of the so-called heavy gang within the gardaí, who were accused of extracting confessions from people under extremely

dubious circumstances in the 1970s. Moreover, Irish people have been victims of even worse police behaviour abroad, especially in England, with such cases as the Guildford Four and Birmingham Six.

As a nation we should be particularly conscious of safeguarding the presumption of innocence. It is vital that our jury system should be allowed to function without fear in an impartial way. The perception of intimidation that has been prevalent in recent weeks cannot be tolerated.