Bush flies home to atone & save a life!

by - Mon Mar 21, 2005 11:44

Garda sergeants and inspectors are calling for the creation of a new criminal offence for people who attack doctors, nurses, prison officers, gardaí or other emergency services personnel working to save lives.

Delegates to the Annual Conference of the AGSI, which begins in Kilkenny today, want the offence created under the Offences Against the Persons Act and those accused of it tried under indictment if necessary.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2005/0321/garda.html

by Mc Dowell - a.k.a. the secret chief. Tue Mar 22, 2005 13:01

Mr President, I am very pleased to be here to address your 27th Annual Delegate Conference, and I appreciate your warm welcome.

I am also honoured to join with you in remembering your colleagues who have passed away since your last conference. They served the State loyally and well, and they deserve our respect.

Mr President, An Garda Siochana faces a period of major challenge and change. The size and profile of our population is changing. The urbanisation of our society is continuing. Sophistication in some crime is increasing, while at the same time the use or threat of violence continues in other crimes. You have demonstrated your commitment and professionalism once again in recent times with significant success against serious crime. For my part, I intend to ensure that you have the necessary resources and support to continue this success.

I am pleased to have secured a Euro53.6 million increase - or more than 5% - in the Garda Vote for 2005. The Garda budget is now at an historic high, having reached over Euro1.1 billion. This funding will enable, among many other things, the continuation of successful anti-crime measures, such as Operations Clean Street, Encounter and Nightcap, to continue to tackle anti-social behaviour in the streets of our towns and cities.

Of course the most important resources in any police force are you - the people working in it. So I am very pleased that the Government commitment to increase the strength of the Garda Siochana to 14,000 is now being delivered. There are many aspects to modern policing in an increasingly sophisticated world, but there is no substitute for sufficient numbers of operational Gardai doing front-line, visible policing duties.

This largest ever increase in the strength of the Force, which my critics said would never happen, is now well under way. Recruitment has started, and the first of the new class sizes of 274 recruits is already in Templemore. New facilities in Templemore are under construction and are ahead of schedule. Excellent accommodation has been obtained for in-service training, freeing-up Templemore for recruits. All of this is a formidable logistical achievement, and is a huge tribute to the Commissioner and every member of the Garda Siochana involved in it.

One particular aspect of this recruitment campaign was the decision to increase the maximum age of entry to the Garda Siochana from 26 years of age to 35 years of age. The need for change arose from a development in the law on discrimination in recruitment and there was an immediate legal imperative to urgently address the matter to avoid costly litigation. This did mean that the process, including meetings of the Garda Conciliation Council, had to be undertaken with great urgency. This increase in the age limit has opened entry to the Force to a group of people with wider life experience, and I am sure you will agree it played a part in the massive record response to the recruitment campaign - a response which took place in a period of record lows in the employment rate.

Garda Siochana Bill
One of the key elements in enabling the Force to face the challenges ahead is the Garda Siochana Bill, which has been passed by Seanad Eireann and is currently before Dail Eireann. The Bill has been well received and I appreciate the constructive approach that your Association has taken.

Changes were made to the Bill as it progressed through the Seanad and they have improved it and sharpened its focus in some areas. In your address, Mr. President, you touched on some of the key changes which relate to the establishment of joint policing committees and a new provision for the establishment of a Garda Siochana Inspectorate.

Garda Siochana Inspectorate
I intend that the Garda Siochana Inspectorate will provide independent advice to the Minister of the day on the efficiency and effectiveness of the operations and administration of the Garda Siochana. It will be made up of three persons, one of whom will be known as the Chief Inspector. It will look at and examine across the Force, issues, with standards, practice and performance benchmarked against comparable international policing experience.

I can confirm that provision is made in the Bill for the Inspectorate's findings to be published, subject to certain exceptions relating to security-sensitive information, or information that might facilitate the commission of an offence, prejudice a criminal investigation or jeopardise the safety of any person.

As regards the suggestion that the Garda associations should be able to refer issues to the Inspectorate, there is nothing in the Bill which would prevent such dialogue with the Inspectorate. In this context, it is worth noting that the Inspectorate will carry out inspections or inquiries not only at the request of the Minister, but also on its own initiative with the consent of the Minister.

Community Policing/Joint Policing Committees
I am delighted with the favourable response to the provisions in the Bill dealing with the establishment of Joint Policing Committees. These Committees will provide a forum where the Garda Siochana and local authorities can co-operate and work together to address local policing and other issues. Rest assured that they will not be one-way avenues for complaints about perceived Garda inadequacies. They will deal with issues such as estate management, planning, traffic, street lighting and public order issues such as drinking in public spaces. Their role is to be a facility whereby matters of local concern can be discussed and where new strategies can be recommended.

I agree with the general principle that there should be a role for other agencies as part of the process, and indeed the Bill provides that other parties, such as those suggested by you Mr. President, could be included on the Committees as required. Of course, the requirements for Committees will vary from one area to the next, and what may be appropriate in a rural area may not be appropriate for an inner city area. That is why, under the Bill, the composition of the Committees will be dealt with in guidelines, which will provide the necessary flexibility.

The Joint Policing Committees will reinforce the link between the Garda Siochana and the communities it serves, and will be a valuable support for community policing, the importance of which is increasingly recognised. I know this is reflected in the Garda Siochana Corporate Strategy and the Policing Plan for 2005, and it was reflected, too, in a recent Joint Oireachtas Committee hearing on the subject. I am sure that your Association's submission on community policing will be a positive contribution to this debate.

Grievances
Turning to some of the other issues raised by you, Mr. President, I am not going to comment in detail on the existing grievance procedure within the Force, but we have had discussions on this in the context of the Garda Siochana Bill, and as you know I do not believe that the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission could deal with purely internal complaints or grievances. I do note your dissatisfaction with existing arrangements, however, and I will carefully study any proposals for change.

Promotions
I hear what you say, Mr President, about promotions and the need for members to feel that the selection procedures are open, transparent and fair. I can say is that I have made a number of amendments to the Garda Siochana Bill concerning promotions. These amendments are aimed at bringing greater transparency to the promotions process, and I hope that they will provide additional reassurance to all concerned with the process.

Accommodation
I have also carefully noted, Mr. President, what you said on the question of Garda accommodation.

I have made no secret of the fact that I consider that certain Garda accommodation is not up to standard. In fairness, considerable investment is being made, in terms of money, time and effort, to improve the working conditions for all Gardai in stations across the country. I am determined to see that effort continue so that the kind of issues you raise are solved once and for all. Without going into too much detail on the five stations listed by you, Mr. President, I know that a great deal of work in under way to build suitable replacements as quickly as possible, both in terms of acquiring sites and then commencing construction.

This is all part of what is a huge Garda Building Programme. I am advised by OPW that in the order of Euro100m will be expended on the Garda Building Programme between now and the end of 2007. That is a lot of money. This year alone, Garda building projects such as Abbeyfeale, Ballycotton, Dundalk, Longwood, and Templemore will be completed. In addition, four new District Headquarters at Ballina, Ballyshannon, Bantry, and New Ross will progress, along with many other projects across the country. Indeed, by the end of 2007, in addition to the five stations hi ghlighted by you, Mr. President, the Office of Public Works expect to have funded and completed Garda station projects at Ballingarry, Oranmore, Ballymote, Buncrana, Castlerea, Claremorris, Donard, Henry Street in Limerick, Irishtown, Kill O' The Grange, Schull and Urlingford.

Digital Radio
Another major investment being made in the Force is the decision to proceed with a National Digital Radio system. Work on the procurement of the system, which I have directed to be dealt with as a priority, is now well underway, and it is planned to have a contract in place by the end of this year. This is just one example of the major investments taking place to provide modern technology to assist members of the Force in their day to day work.

Legislative reform
Mr President, investment in human resources and equipment for the Garda Siochana is essential, but the criminal law, and particularly your powers of criminal investigation, must also be improved. The Criminal Justice Bill 2004 contains a comprehensive package of anti-crime measures which will enhance the powers of the Gardai in the investigation and prosecution of offences, and generally provide for improvements to the operation of the criminal justice system. The recent Proceeds of Crime Amendment Act has also strengthened the operation of the Criminal Assets Bureau. I am determined to continue this process of improvement in the criminal law to enable Gardai to fight crime and public disorder.

One measure which I recently proposed is the introduction of anti-social behaviour orders. Critics have claimed that these orders would needlessly criminalise those who engage in trivial and essentially harmless behaviour, but this is simply not the case. The orders will be civil orders, and the question of an offence will only arise if a person the subject of an order wilfully defies that order and continues to engage in the behaviour. They will be analogous in some ways to the old procedure of summoning persons to the District Court to "bind them over to keep the peace and be of good behaviour". I am determined to press ahead with this measure by way of amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill. Armchair critics of the proposal clearly have no idea of how the quality of life of decent, vulnerable law abiding citizens can be badly affected by the continuing anti-social behaviour of a bullying, abusive minority. People should not have to put up with this, and Gardai should have the power to deal with it.

Victims of crime
I agree with you, Mr. President, that we must do all we can to help victims of crime. I am establishing a new Commission for the Support of Victims of Crime, following a review of existing support provisions. The Commission's remit will be to devise a new framework for the support of victims of crime, and disburse funding for victim support measures.

The Commission's membership includes:
Mr. Jim McHugh, retired Assistant Commissioner, An Garda Siochana
Mrs. Nora Owen, former Minister for Justice
Mr. Sean Lowry, former head of the Probation and Welfare Service
Mr. Michael Whelan, Gemini Consulting
Ms. Marian Finucane, broadcaster

Funding will be made available immediately and a number of expressions of interest in relation to the provision of victim support services have already been received by my Department in response to a public advertisement.

Sinn Fein/IRA

Mr. President, let me turn to the issue you raised of IRA criminality, and specifically the Northern Bank robbery and the brutal murder of Robert McCartney.

I do not believe that there could be any doubt where I stand on this issue. As a result I have been singled out for criticism from the Provisional movement and they even suggest that I in some way am obstructing the peace process. That, of course, is to stand reality on its head.

The Good Friday Agreement is the democratically expressed wish of all the people of this island. The Government is duty bound to do all it can to see that Agreement fully implemented. And the simple truth is that the continued existence and activities of the Provisional IRA represents by far the greatest obstacle to the implementation of that Agreement. Seven years after the Good Friday Agreement we still have a movement that robs banks and brazenly denies it; that pretends to protect communities while doing the exact opposite; and that responds to murder by threatening to shoot people. It really is an act of monumental self-delusion to think that the problem is caused by the people who point out these facts rather than the activities of the movement itself.

Since the foundation of the State, members of An Garda Siochana have always been to the fore in defending our democratic institutions - indeed some members have been called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice. One of the reasons why the killers of Jerry McCabe will never be considered for early release is the claim now made that the murders of many Gardai by IRA members was never a crime because it was done on the authority of the IRA. You will be all too well aware of the continuing threat posed by groupings who are intent on thwarting the will of the Irish people. While we must remain ever vigilant, it is only right to record the fact that members of the Force have had very significant successes in countering this threat. But the potential threat to our democratic institutions does not come from dissident groups alone. Private armies inextricably linked to political parties are, of their nature, profoundly anti-democratic. They have historical echoes from the brown-shirts to the mafia. And when they are engaged in massive fund-raising operations through robbing banks and other forms of organised crime to fund the political ends of their movement, the threat to our democracy, while more insidious, is just as real. That is why I want to congratulate your members and all members of the Force who were recently successful in smashing a massive PIRA- linked money-laundering operation in this jurisdiction. However hard it is for these people to understand, this is a State which is bound by the rule of law and I know members of An Garda Siochana can be relied on to enforce that law without fear or favour.

I do not propose to dwell on the statement issued by those convicted in relation to the killing of the late Jerry McCabe and the wounding of Ben O'Sullivan. To say the least it was belated and anyway represents no more than a recognition of the reality of the Government's position that the release of those persons will not form any part of any future discussions. I would like to think that in my dealings with your Association on this issue I was always frank and open. For their part, the Association never left me in any doubt of their views. And the bottom line is that these prisoners continue to serve their sentences and, as far as we are concerned, that will never change.

While it is the case that the brutal murder of Robert McCartney took place in another jurisdiction, it served to remind us of the true nature of the provisional movement. I had the privilege recently of meeting his fiancee and his sisters - whose courage and determination to seek justice have deeply impressed us all. As members of a police force, you will appreciate more than most one simple reality: attaining that justice will require people to co-operate with the investigation being carried out by your colleagues in the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The idea that a trial for murder will somehow happen with key witnesses appearing without police involvement belongs in the area of fiction.

Co-operation with the PSNI

In that context, I am glad to say that co-operation between the Garda Siochana and the Police Service of Northern Ireland is at an all time high. Exactly one month ago, on 21 February, the Garda Commissioner and the Chief Constable of the PSNI signed protocols which provide for a programme of Personnel Exchanges and Secondments between the two forces.

I believe that the signing of these protocols will take co-operation between the two forces to a new level, and will bring benefits to both jurisdictions in the form of improved effectiveness in crime prevention and detection. In addition, the implementation of these protocols will provide a two-way flow of experience and expertise which will enhance policing standards in both organisations.

Mr President, in conclusion, let me say again that I have listened carefully to your remarks, and I will bear in mind your views. I believe that a time of great opportunity lies ahead for the Garda Siochana, a time when it will have increased strength, more resources, better equipment and improved training. It will also continue to have what it has always enjoyed and deserved, the support and trust of the public each and every one of you serve.

Thank you all again for your kind welcome and I hope you enjoy the rest of the evening.

by - Tue Mar 22, 2005 13:08

so the architects of the US constitution meant it to be.

A federal judge on Tuesday refused to order the reinsertion of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube, denying an emergency request from the brain-damaged woman's parents.

**********

The Minister for Justice, Michael Mc Dowell (blonde) has said ne won't intervene in a deportation of a young Nigerian man (black) who was just about to sit his Leaving Certificate. The young man (black) has been flown to Nigeria (predominantly black) where most people don't have leaving certificates, and so he won't seem too over-educated.

Supporters of Olunkunle Eluhanla (19) (black chap) are planning to picket Fáilte Ireland offices abroad as part of a campaign to embarrass the Government into allowing the return of the student. Mr Eluhanla, (black) who was due to sit his Leaving Certificate at Palmerstown (predominantly white) Community School in June, had been in Ireland (predominantly racist) since he was 16.

The juxtaposition of these two stories might seem odd, but give it a week and it won't.

by potters Tue Mar 22, 2005 20:54

By Jeff Franks

HOUSTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush's intervention for Terri Schiavo has opened old wounds in Texas where death penalty opponents say his words of support for a "culture of life" ring hollow after so many executions during
his time as governor of the state.

Bush said he stepped into the Schiavo case because the United States should have "a presumption in favour of life," but there were 152 executions in Texas during his administration, including some in which the convict's guilt was in doubt, critics said.

"It's hypocrisy at a thousand levels," said University of Houston law professor and death penalty defence attorney David Dow.

"I saw many, many cases where there was substantial doubt about whether someone was guilty or whether the death penalty was the appropriate sentence, but he never said anything," said David Atwood, head of the Texas Coalition
Against the Death Penalty. "I really can't say he cares about life."

"We all recognize there is a difference between an innocent person and someone who has committed a heinous crime, but to say one life is important and one isn't, that's politics," Atwood said.

Bush has defended the high number of executions by saying he was confident everyone put to death in Texas was guilty because they had had a fair hearing in the courts he believed

capital punishment was a deterrent to crime.

He interrupted a Texas vacation and flew to Washington to sign an emergency law passed by Congress on Monday that forced a review of the Schiavo case in federal court.

Schiavo, 41, has been in a vegetative state since a heart attack in 1990. Last week, a Florida court, at her husband's request, ordered the removal of the feeding tube keeping her alive, but her parents argued it should stay in place.

"In cases like this one, where there are serious questions and substantial doubts, our society, our laws and our courts should have a presumption in favour of life," said Bush, who has spoken often of creating a "culture of life" by limiting such
things as abortion and stem cell research.

Death penalty opponents said Bush did not give the same presumption to death row inmates in Texas, where he used his power to grant an execution stay only once while governor from 1995 to 2000.

In 2000, the state set a U.S. record with 40 executions, including that of Gary Graham, whose guilt was hotly contested and became an international controversy.

"In the face of pretty substantial evidence that Gary Graham was not a murderer, George Bush didn't say anything about a 'culture of life,'" Dow said.

Legal experts say Bush has not been totally consistent on the "right-to-die" issue because in 1999 he signed a Texas law similar to the Florida law under which a judge ordered the removal of Schiavo's feeding tube.

The Texas law allows for life support to be stopped under certain circumstances at the request of a family member or other appropriate surrogate.

"If this case had been in Texas the same thing would have happened as happened in Florida," said John Robertson, professor at the University of Texas law school and author of a book on bioethics called "The Rights of the Critically Ill."

But, he said, Bush's support of the emergency bill for Schiavo was not "a direct contradiction" of the Texas law.

"He's saying he thought it was good enough from the state's perspective at the time, and now he's saying there may be cases that might need a second look," he said.

Diane Clemens, head of the Houston-based Justice for All victims' rights group, said death penalty opponents were not making legitimate comparisons.

"This woman is an innocent, brain-damaged individual who has harmed no one. Killers are convicted murderers who have harmed many people. They have had a fair process," she said.

"They have had the very process these people would try and deny Schiavo -- and that is a request for life at the federal level, in the federal courts."

On Monday, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the president's decision was based on principle, not politics.

http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=5620933

link to the TCADP and Mr Atwood (who served prison for his beliefs)-
http://www.tcadp.org/
link to Margaret Attwood's book you all have to read-
http://www.bookrags.com/notes/hmt/SUM.htm

by how hypocrisy smells. Wed Mar 23, 2005 13:08

As Texas governor, George W. Bush signed a law that allows hospitals to pull the plug on critically ill patients despite family objections - the kind of court-authorized move the president and fellow Republicans are challenging in the Terri Schiavo case.

The White House said Monday that Bush's position is consistent and that the Texas bill focused on expanding the rights of the critically ill and their families to prevent hospitals and doctors from denying life-saving treatment.

Bush spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters that Bush vetoed 1997 legislation that would have put into law Texas hospital policies that gave families virtually no protections and as little as 72 hours to find alternate care after a hospital decided to stop treatment.

Under the 1999 law, another White House official said, Bush expanded that time to 10 days and authorized family members to seek extensions in court but acknowledge that if the challenges fell short, "under the legislation, the hospital still could authorize the end of life."

Just last week, the Texas law resulted in what some call a first in the United States: A Houston hospital cut off life support for a badly deformed 6-month-old baby after his mother lost a court challenge. The baby died almost immediately.

Democrats and even some medical ethicists are citing the 1999 Texas law to charge that Bush's position in the Schiavo case is hypocritical compared to the stance he took as governor.
"The Texas statute that Bush signed authorized the ending of the life, even over the parents' protest. And what he's doing here is saying, 'The parents are protesting. You shouldn't stop,'" said John Paris, a medical ethicist at Boston College.

A hospital association lawyer who helped draft the Texas law said it would have allowed for the removal of Schiavo's feeding tube if all legal challenges had been exhausted because the Texas law would make her husband the primary decision-maker.

In Texas, Bush's position had the backing of the Texas Right-to-Life Association, whose national headquarters, along with other Christian conservatives who make up a key part of the Republican base, has taken up the fight to prolong Schiavo's life.

Burke Balch, director of the Powell Center for Medical Ethics at National Right-to-Life in Washington, said he represented the Texas chapter in more than two dozen negotiating sessions over the 1999 bill.

source-
http://www.stltoday.com

by .:. Wed Mar 23, 2005 23:17

Mr & Mrs Schindler (not to be confused with Schindler's list) are now considering a turn to the supreme court.

But the BBC's Washington correspondent, Justin Webb, says the odds seem stacked against them.

The White House, (President Bush, the angel of the lord [not the angel of death red lake] ) which has tried to help the couple in their battle, says it has run out of legal options.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4376573.stm

by seven days in a week Thu Mar 24, 2005 18:47

the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected all pressure to order the re-insertion of a feeding tube into the body of Terri Schiavo who has been in a persistent vegetative state for over 15 years, despite the most hypocritical and inconsistent moves by George Bush and his family to play the "life card" and manipulate yet more extremist religious sentiments amonst their core conservative voters in the USA (a.k.a. Gilead)

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/24/politics/24cnd-schia.html

Olunkunle Eluhanla is going to fly home to Ireland because his mates cared enough to learn the lessons of participative democracy.

http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=69101

& the Gardaí are going to go on complaining about not having good enough houses or enough power or being listened to, and not wanting to be seen as racists "even if they are behind it all" by every piss-taking seventeen year old. And some of them are even going to vote "sf/ira" and some "sp" and some "green" and some "labour" and of course there'll still be those who vote "ff/fg/pd" and sure in this day and age nobody would be surprised if they voted "independent" or didn't even bother voting @ all.

have a good weekend!