• EL - ελληνικά
  • EN - English
  • GA - Gaeilge
Parliamentary question - E-003116/2019Parliamentary question
E-003116/2019

The illegal detention in Ireland of US veterans Ken Mayers and Tarak Kauff

Question for written answer E-003116-19
to the Commission
Rule 138
Clare Daly (GUE/NGL) , Mick Wallace (GUE/NGL) , Luke Ming Flanagan (GUE/NGL) , Martina Anderson (GUE/NGL) , Dimitrios Papadimoulis (GUE/NGL) , Grace O'Sullivan (Verts/ALE) , Ciarán Cuffe (Verts/ALE)

On 17 March 2019, the Government of Ireland arrested two US Veterans for Peace at Shannon airport. The men had entered Shannon airfield in an effort to inspect and investigate an aircraft they believed to be carrying up to 300 armed US troops through Shannon airport.

The veterans, aged 82 (Mayers) and 77 (Kauff), were imprisoned for 13 days, after which their passports were taken away with no notice of a trial date.

1. Can the Commission confirm the absolute violation by the Irish authorities of Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (CFREU) in this case, constituting a flagrant denial of justice?

2. Can the Commission undertake efforts to establish a dialogue with the Irish authorities in order to end the hopeless situation of these two men?

3. Can the Commission confirm that respect for family life, as enshrined in Article 7 CFREU and Article 8 ECHR, has been violated, given that these two men are being denied the opportunity to return to the US while awaiting their trial date?

Last updated: 22 October 2019
Legal notice - Privacy policy