{"id":10074,"date":"2022-06-28T16:41:06","date_gmt":"2022-06-28T20:41:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aoh.com\/?p=10074"},"modified":"2022-06-28T16:41:08","modified_gmt":"2022-06-28T20:41:08","slug":"hibernians-rfj-lobby-against-amnesty-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aoh.com\/2022\/06\/28\/hibernians-rfj-lobby-against-amnesty-law\/","title":{"rendered":"Hibernians – RFJ Lobby Against Amnesty Law"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Leading\u00a0Hibernians, joined by Mark Thompson of\u00a0Relatives for Justice, secured\u00a0crucial\u00a0Senate, House,\u00a0and Irish Oireachtas support\u00a0against the\u00a0planned\u00a0British Amnesty bill\u00a0last week in Washington.\u00a0The emergency lobby took place as\u00a0Britain moves to rush through an amnesty bill despite overwhelming\u00a0opposition\u00a0across Ireland.\u00a0A key public statement\u00a0by Senate Majority\u00a0Leader Charles\u00a0Schumer, a new House Foreign Affairs Committee\u00a0initiative, and backing for\u00a0an\u00a0Irish government\u00a0case against\u00a0Britain in the European Court\u00a0of Human Rights, wereamong results\u00a0which made the\u00a0week one of the most importantlobbying missions by the Ancient Order of Hibernians\u00a0in memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senate<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer agreed to meet three leading AOH members, President Danny O\u2019Connell, Vice-President Sean Pender, and Freedom for all Ireland Chair Martin Galvin, accompanied by Mark Thompson for an emergency briefing on the British Northern Ireland Troubles Legacy and Reconciliation Bill. A visiting Irish Oireachtas Good Friday Agreement Committee, comprised of elected Senators, Members of Parliament, and Dail representatives, requested to attend and support the call for legacy justice. The Chair of the GFA Committee Fine Gael TD Fergus O\u2019Dowd, and Sinn MP John Finucane were added as attendees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Mark Thompson, presented a briefing document on the British legislation and a copy of the Good Friday Agreement, then described the \u2018heartbreak<\/em>, cutting across generations, felt by thousands of victims RfJ represents, who have<\/em> spent decades seeking<\/em> truth about the murder of their loved ones<\/em>, and now see the British government taking away all of their rights to justice enshrined under the European Convention of Human Rights and Good Friday Agreement<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Martin Galvin said that \u2018American opposition in the Senate and House is<\/em> believed to be the one<\/em> thing which<\/em> has<\/em> delayed passage of the amnesty bill thus far<\/em> and a strong statement from the Senate Majority Leader could make a crucial difference\u2019<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Danny O\u2019Connell noted that <\/em>\u2018all parties in the north<\/em>,<\/em> nationalist a<\/em>nd unionist agree on very little but they are all opposed to the British amnesty bill<\/em>\u2019 <\/em>while Sean Pender added that \u2018all these victims want is the truth which has always been on their side.\u2019<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Finucane MP said \u2018These proposals are about protecting those in the corridors of power at Whitehall and Westminster.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fergus O\u2019Dowd TD\u00a0added\u00a0the\u00a0\u2019bill was opposed by all groups and communities in the north with whom the GFA Committee had spoken and by leading political parties in the south\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Schumer Statement<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

That afternoon Senator Schumer responded with issued a strongly worded statement which said in part:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

   <\/em>\u201cI was pleased today to meet with Irish American leaders from AOH and leading Irish human rights advocates and elected representatives \u2014 including elected representatives John Finucane and Fergus O\u2019Dowd \u2014 on a number of matters, including the unwelcome and unjustified amnesty legislation and the recently proposed legislation to unilaterally undermine the already negotiated and agreed upon Northern Irish Protocol. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe proposed amnesty legislation would severely undermine both the system of engagement and institutions of justice set forth in the Good Friday Agreement and the Stormont House Agreement, which gave victims access to pursue truth and justice. The proposed amnesty legislation is unilateral and unwelcome by virtually all parties, as well as unjustified by the facts and history. I sincerely hope it will not gain support because it would serve to derail truth, reconciliation and justice for so many victims and would hurt, not help, the ongoing intent of the Good Friday Agreement to promote and preserve peace, mutual respect and shared prosperity. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mark Thompson\u00a0and the AOH members\u00a0also gave an hour long\u00a0briefing\u00a0to Senate Foreign Relations Committee\u00a0staff membersand held meetings with State Department officials to consider follow-up plans to Senator Schumer\u2019s statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

House Foreign Affairs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The AOH and Mark Thompson\u00a0then\u00a0held a series of briefings on the Amnesty\u00a0bill with key members of the House of Representatives. Congressman\u00a0Bill\u00a0Keating the Chair of the Hose Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe suggested given the emergency timeframe, he might be able to arrange a special briefing where members could hear from witnesses and then make their own statements in opposition to the bill. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican on the Committee agreed to\u00a0support this\u00a0initiative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The delegation then held a series of key meetings with Democrats Brendan Boyle, David Cicilline, and Jamal Bowman, and Republicans Chris Smith, Mike Kelly and Burgess Owens to ask support and participation in a House Foreign Affairs briefing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other briefings were held with House Foreign Affairs Committee staff and with key staffers for Congressman Richie Neal and Brian Higgins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Good Friday Committee<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

AOH members, with Mark Thompson also met members of the GFA Committee delegation including Fergus O\u2019Dowd TD, Peadar ToibinTD, John Finucane MP,Rose Conway-Walsh TDand Senator John McGahon<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During this meeting Danny O\u2019Connell asked the GFA Committee to recommend that the Irish government consider taking Britain to the European Court of Human Rights over the planned amnesty bill. An Irish government case at the European Court, could represent victims across the 32 counties and spare victims\u2019 relatives\u2019 years of delays exhausting local remedies in Crown and Appellate courts, before European Courts could consider the case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fergus O\u2019Dowd, the Committee Chair said he would back such a move and recommend it to the full GFA Committee for approval.<\/p>\n

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