When the debate was adjourned on the last sitting day there was a certain wrangle about the use of unparliamentary language. I used a word which had a certain vulgar flavour about it. I was quoting from Senator Barry Goldwater. I would like to take up that point because I think one must evaluate the significance of that small unparliamentary expression and place it in the context of the real obscenity of what is going on in Nicaragua. I think it is important that we underline that point. I will not try the patience of the House by reading into the record precisely what this kind of obscenity consists of, but a book recently published called Nicaragua — an Unfinished Canvas contains eyewitness accounts of multiple rape and mutilation of bodies. It seems that this rather than any parliamentary language should be the subject of our delicate considerations.
I want to say that I feel, as a friend of America — I consider myself a friend of America, it is a great country, there is no doubt about that — that it behoves us as friends of America to point out where their foreign policy has gone seriously wrong. I am reminded of a text by the great French novelist, Emile Zola, called J'accuse— I accuse. I would like to say that on the basis of the evidence that I have seen recently it would be appropriate to accuse the American administration of certain irresponsible behaviour amounting to an aura of international criminality. I would have to place on record, with regret, the fact that a book recently published, which I referred to the last day, Out of Control by a very distinguished television journalist, a woman called Cockburn, clearly places on the record the fact that the American administration have flagrantly violated international and domestic laws and the rules of their own parliament. Among the other things in which this administration has engaged appears to be the massive importation of cocaine, with which they have drenched the young people of their own population, in order illegally to acquire money to fund arms for Nicaragua. That seems to me to be a seriously worrying prospect. It indicates to me that Contragate is a much worse and much more far-reaching scandal than ever Watergate was; and if Watergate was sufficient to indict an American President, President Nixon, there should surely be some serious examination of the situation in the light of Contragate. However I am an optimistic person. I believe it is possible even for the most deluded to learn and I hope, although I am not particularly confident, that Vice-President George Bush, soon to be President of America, will learn from his experience in Contragate. I am not under any illusions that he will read the record of this debate, but I believe that as concern grows internationally about the American treatment of Nicaragua these issues will surely rise to haunt the American Administration.
What can we do? Why am I mentioning this here? I am mentioning it because it seems to me that we as a small country with many similarities to Nicaragua in terms of population, size and history can in fact extend a degree of protection to this valiant and brave country by granting to them the proper recognition by according full diplomatic status to our representation there. I am encouraged in this by virtue of the fact that this is called for in many documents originating in this country by Irish groups and in particular a publication of the Irish Nicaragua Support Group, an important briefing document just entitled Nicaragua which is published and circulated to all Members of this House, I understand, this week and the final page carries a series of eight recommendations to the Irish Government. I am not going to put them all on the record. The Minister, I am sure, will by now be familiar with them but it will not surprise him that item no. 3 states that the Irish Government should establish formal diplomatic relations with Nicaragua on a non-resident basis. This also formed a principal plank of the report compiled by distinguished representatives of both Houses who supervised Nicaraguan elections.
Some Senators have mentioned some of the errors made by the administation in Nicaragua. One has to admit that there were errors but in the context of the appalling situation in Latin America they were small and marginal errors and they have been corrected. I think it would be wrong to emphasise the existence of these errors. For example, it was indicated that a state of emergency had been declared and there were certain censorship regulations. I need not remind this House that we have section 31 in this State; that we are still in the last number of decades in a state of suspended animation as far as the declaration of state of emergency is concerned. We still in this country have a state of emergency and I think it would be quite extraordinary if we were to criticise too severely this small, fragile and vulnerable state simply on the basis that it has a state of emergency in existence. It is clear that without a political solution the Nicaraguan people will continue to suffer and die. As war cripples the economy further, the poorest will be worst hit. We have had the example of the hurricane. I appeal to the Minister to put in context the remarks of Senator Haughey, which I was most surprised to hear in the last day's debate, that while establishing diplomatic relations may be the moral thing to do, he asked the question: can we afford it? I would like to feel that this country in the exercise of its foreign policy options makes international morality an important plank and answers that question by saying that we cannot afford to support a foreign policy that is not moral. On this occasion I am in the unusual situation of agreeing with and applauding the position of members of the Roman Catholic Hierarchy who have courageously, with dignity and quite correctly supported the Nicaraguan people and the Nicaraguan Government. I need not say that the foreign minister and a number of other prominent political people are Roman Catholic priests. The final thing I would like to say is that there is, in this excellent book, Nicaragua — an Unfinished Canvas a definitive answer to the charges of atheism, corruption and communism levelled against this small and vulnerable state in an article by Father Miguel D'Escoto, a distinguished Jesuit priest who says: “I am a man, a Nicaraguan, a Christian and a priest, all of which demand of me certain things but not contradictory demands”. I honour a country which is able to reconcile these various and strong demands and I urge that the Minister should live up to the obligation placed on us by our own tragic history and do the decent thing by extending full diplomatic recognition to the State of Nicaragua.