Who really wants these extra powers?

THE proposed Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Bill 2002 outlaws crimes of terror, no doubt with praiseworthy aims.

However, there is a balance to be struck here. Every increase in the power of the gardaí means a diminution of the freedom of the individual.

Paul O’Mahony, in ‘Criminal Chaos’ (Round Hall, 1996), speaks of “repression by stealth,”and says that the police state is not a remote fantasy. He says that, on the contrary, it is only kept at bay by “the effectiveness of our laws in upholding individual human rights.”

This proposed law reduces this effectiveness, and will reduce human rights for a large number of people.

Therefore, before the legislature further shifts the balance of power, the people should know who exactly is seeking these powers, and why.

I call on the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, to put these facts before the people.

Richard Greene,

Chairman,

Irish Civil Rights Assoc.,

58, The Palms,

Roebuck Road,

Clonskeagh,

Dublin 14.