At the Cabinet meeting today, the Government gave approval to the Minister for Justice to move Oireachtas resolutions to renew certain provisions, contained in the Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998 and the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009, aimed at tackling the threats posed by terrorism and organised crime.
Commenting on the Government’s decision, the Minister for Justice, Heather Humphreys TD, said,
“These laws are in place to protect and safeguard the State from those who are determined to undermine it and its democratic institutions. They play an important role in enabling the State to face down the threat posed by those who are wedded to violence and who are opposed to peace and democracy, and those organised criminal gangs that are ruthless in the pursuit of their criminal objectives”.
The Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998 was enacted in the aftermath of the Omagh bombing and contains a number of important anti-terrorism provisions.
The Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009 provides for certain legislative measures to tackle organised crime. The provision the subject of today’s decision provides that certain serious organised crime offences are to be tried in the Special Criminal Court unless the DPP directs otherwise.
The legislation requires that the provisions must be renewed by the Oireachtas at specified intervals. Unless resolutions are passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas before 30 June 2021, the provisions will cease to be in operations.
Minister Humphreys added,
“The Independent Review Group established to review the Offences against the State Acts continues its work and an interim report is expected in the coming weeks. In the meantime, my intention is to move resolutions in both the Dáil and Seanad to ensure the provisions continue to have effect.“
ENDS…/
Note for Editors
The Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998 was enacted in the aftermath of the bombing at Omagh and contains a number of important anti-terrorism provisions including the offences of directing an unlawful organisation, training persons in the making and use of firearms and withholding of information. It provides for, amongst other things, inferences to be drawn from a failure to answer material questions and extensions of the period of detention in certain circumstances.
The Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009 came into force on 23 July 2009. The primary purpose of the Act was to introduce additional measures targeted at combating organised crime.
The Act provides, inter alia, for the trial of certain offences in the Special Criminal Court. Section 8 of the Act provides that certain serious, organised crime offences under Part 7 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006 are scheduled offences for the purposes of Part V of the Offences against the State Act 1939.
In effect, this allows the Special Criminal Court to hear trials for the offences in question without prejudice to the power of the DPP to direct that a person not be sent forward for trial by that court.
The offences in question are directing a criminal organisation; participating in or contributing to the activities of a criminal organisation; committing an offence for a criminal organisation and such offences when committed by bodies corporate.
The Independent Review Group, chaired by Mr Justice Michael Peart, former Judge of the Court of Appeal, was established in February 2021. The group is tasked with examining all aspects of the Offences against the State Acts, taking into account:
- the current threat posed by domestic/international terrorism and organised crime;
- the duty to deliver a fair and effective criminal justice system to ensure the protection of communities and the security of the State;
- Ireland’s obligations in relation to Constitutional and ECHR rights and international law.
The review will be undertaken in consultation with the relevant stakeholders, statutory agencies and civil society organisations.
Public consultation will remain open until 9 July. For further information please visit www.oasareview.ie