France 24 on Libertas and Declan Ganley's links with notorious anti-Semites

Anti-Semitic links - 20/05/2009
Libertas, Lech and some odd bedfellows
By Fiachra Gibbons/RFI


Less than a week after it launched as the first truly Europe-wide party, the new right-wing alliance Libertas is already looking shaky amid a flurry of accusations about links with notorious anti-Semites, questionable funding methods and even an allegation that it is part of a Russian plot to destabilise the EU.

The movement, led by Declan Ganley - the controversial Irish businessman behind the No campaign that defeated a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland last year - wants similar votes across Europe on all new treaties. With at least 200 Libertas candidates already signed up to stand in 23 countries, Ganley pulled off a major coup in persuading the legendary Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa to kick off their election campaign in Rome. Walesa seemed to wholeheartedly throw his weight behind the new party, telling its candidates that "I am with you always". His endorsement of Declan Ganley and the new party could hardly be more fullsome, saying Libertas and its leader were a "a force for good in the world" who had the potential to "change Europe for the better".

But back in Poland, where Libertas has been headed by the League of Polish Families, who advocate the "elimination of Jewish influence" from Polish life and business, Walesa has been pilloried. His former comrades in the ruling Civic Platform Party, for which his son is standing in June, were quick to turn on him, with one prominent commentator claiming Walesa was acting as a Russian spy and a stooge of the Kremlin.

Having admitted that he was paid handsomely for the address in Rome, Walesa said he still supports his old party colleagues, although he would like some Libertas candidates to enter the European Parliament. "It's better when radicals follow some rules," he claims.

It has also emerged that Libertas's campaign in Poland is being funded with loans Ganley has personally undertaken to underwrite, getting through a loophole in Polish law over foreign electoral funding. But Libertas's French arm, led by the royalist former presidental candidate Philippe de Villiers, denies the practice is widespread and told RFI they will not be taking a centime from Ganley, since such funding would be illegal in France.

The inclusion of De Villiers, who is doggedly anti-Europe, anti-Nato, and against Turkey's entry into the EU, also points to some glaring inconsistencies about policy within Libertas. Ganley claims he is not against Europe, but just wants to reform it, and make it more democratically accountable. His is also pro-Nato and has said he supports Turkey's entry.

Despite these setbacks, Ganley says Libertas support across the continent has rocketed on the back of its simple message that "Brussels is taking away your freedom without giving you a vote". A huge online petition and advertising campaign , that includes banner adverts on Google's email facility, gmail, has made the party's site the most visited of any in the campaign, with "millions of hits", he says.

Ganley, however, remains an elusive and divisive figure. In Ireland, where he spent a part of his teenage years after being born to Irish parents near London, the former teaboy has been dubbed Doctor No, and The International Man of Mystery. His critics claim he has never given a satisfactory explanation about how he built his fortune, which now rests on contracts to supply communications equipment to the US military.

Former Libertas employee Naosie Nunn tells BBC Vote Yes to Lisbon

Declan Ganley's political capital falls further with each media appearance of Naosie Nunn who was a former director of elections for Declan Ganley's Libertas. See him on the link below talking David Grossman on BBC Newstalk. Declan Ganley famously contradicted Naoise Nunn over the fact that Ganley's US Defence contracting firm, Rivada Networks, actually employed Naoise Nunn, and Politics.ie's David Cochrane to set up the Libertas brand in 2007 and early 2008.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/8068775.stm

The Lisbon Treaty could finally come into effect in 2009, eight years after European leaders launched a process to make the EU "more democratic, more transparent and more efficient".

Naoise Nunn, former executive director of Libertas which campaigned against the Treaty, tells David Grossman why he believes that Ireland, which rejected it last year, does not have the luxury of voting No for a second time.

Lech Walesa offers penance over Ganley affair and says he will come to Ireland to campaign for a YES vote in Lisbon referendum

Walesa to convince the Irish about the Treaty
PAP
Onet.pl Wiadomo?ci

[Here is a translation of a Polish Press Agency article that appeared today.]

Former Polish President Lech Wałęsa declared readiness to come to Ireland to persuade its people to adopt the Lisbon Treaty. He said this in an interview with AFP agency - informs PAP (Polish Press Agency) service.

"As a member of the EU Council of Wise Men I should listen to people from Libertas in order to know, what they think and what they are planning. I do not agree with Libertas and only present to them my point of view" Walesa said in an interview published today, referring to criticism relating to his participation in Libertas' congresses.

"I am ready to go to Ireland and take part in the discussion there, alone or accompanied by (the leader of Libertas Declan) Ganley and say: "My dear Irishmen, back up the treaty. This is necessary because it's better to have an imperfect driver than not have any at all. And this treaty we will improve" he pointed out.

He assured that his aim is to "convince Ganley to withdraw from the criticism of the Treaty of Lisbon.

The Irish rejected the treaty in a referendum in June 2008, the next referendum to take place at the end of this year. For the treaty to come into force, it must be ratified by all Member States.

Walesa stressed the need to talk to opponents. "Of course, you can refuse to talk, force anti-EU or antiglobal to demonstrate. However, you can also accept a democratic confrontation, invite them to take part in the discussion to see what they have to say - said Walesa.

"Walesa wondered on the situation of some of the mentioned countries - with only 20 percent of the population taking part in the elections. The question is what the other 80 percent thinks. Really, is there no room for other ideas? Does somebody have a monopoly on truth?" Asked Walesa.

He pointed out that "It is better for the skeptics and opponents to find their place in the European structures instead of manifesting in the streets, throwing stones and burning tires.

He expressed his conviction that the EU should have a president, though he stressed that "what is needed first is to define his powers, areas of his responsibility, for example, relations with Russia and China." He also added that "if we wont have a strong leadership, we will stay an underdog against Russia and China."

Walesa has expressed the regret that Europe does not recognize the significance of the date of 4 June 1989 - "The elections in communist Poland knocked the teeth of the communist bear, and when a toothless bear could no longer bite, we could move on to destroy the Berlin Wall" - he said. "Unfortunately, many people in Europe do not want to keep in mind that it was Poland and the Poles in 1989 that opened the way for the dismantling of the Yalta order and for the unification of Europe." __________________

Thanks to our Polish bureau for the accurate translation

Caroline Simons thinks Germany has a prime minister and that Ireland should return to being the Free State and get tough on immigrants

On Irish TV tonight Caroline Simons's the Libertas anti abortion candidate for Dublin refused to say how much she was intending to spend or where the money would come from. .She even went red in the face when she was trying to evade answering the question on every-one's lips. Where do you get the cash Libertas. Eventually under intense questioning she said she would spend the legally allowed 200,000 to 250,000 and that she was getting donations from "around the country".
Can one person who has given money to Simon's please let me know.............

Caroline really messed up again when she said Roman Herzog had been the "prime minister" of Germany. Eh NO Caroline try Wikipedia your party edit it enough Germany has Presidents not prime minsters.

When she brought up the Lisbon Treaty she was completely nutty.

She said that Ireland had been "given a constitution in the early part of the last century" and this was "fine". Does she mean that we should return to the 1922 Anglo Irish Treaty that ended the Irish War of Independence and led to the Civil war 1922-23?
Does she mean that we should replace the Lisbon Treaty and Ireland's two subsequent constitution's? The 1937 abolished the Irish Free State and links with constitutional links with the United Kingdom the 1948 constitution and created the modern Irish Republic? Libertas are pushing a nutty idea.
It would seem that Libertas want Ireland to return to being called the Irish Free State and that our elected representatives would swear allegiance to the British royal family. This would tie in with Ganley's own love for the British military and their personnel who he has employed to run Libertas in Northern Ireland.

At the end of the show Simon's came out in favour of tightening up Ireland's immigration laws and seemed to be crestfallen that the country can't close its doors to EU citizens. The more Libertas are forced to answer questions the more far right their stance is shown to be.

Irish Free State of Xenophobia anyone?

The idea that Libertas believe that Ireland should return to being The Free State is not out of touch with Declan Ganley's hagiographer Bruce Arnold who recently signed a letter demanding that Ireland return to being part of the British Commonwealth . http://www.irelandandthecommonwealth.com/

Libertas, Declan Ganley and transparency

When Libertas say they are the party of transparency what do they really mean?
Here is an example of Libertas founder Declan Ganley's transparency when he was confronted with questions about funding for the Lisbon referendum in Ireland.

On 11 June 2008 the Irish Independent reported that Ganley had " reacted angrily yesterday to questions about the financing of his Libertas group."
He went on , no doubt angrily. that he had only spent €6,500 personally on the campaign and that he remainder of Libertas' (alleged) €1.3m budget coming from donations. Furthermore he asserted that it was untrue to say he had invested this money. Ganley in fact said:

This is the thing, it's untrue to say I have invested this money. We're getting donations in every day from business, from taxi drivers, from all sorts of people

By 19 September 2008 Ganley told the Irish Times that he had in fact made a least one loan of 200,000 Euro to Libertas and his employees say that this was a a commercial rate of interest. He also admitted that other people had also provided loans This claim was made in order to assert that Libertas had acted within Irish law when Ganley funded huge amounts of their anti Lisbon campaign. However the fact that in June he said that all the money bar his own donation of 6,500 came from donations was false. The fact that he admitted his own huge loan and other loans in September means that his "angry" statements were pure bluster and were NOT transparent.

Whereas it may be argued that such carry on is typical in politics there is no way to argue that his "angry" June statements prior to the election were transparent or truthful.

Ganley today backed down from a legal challenge he had brought against the Village magazine .
The article included the following quotation about Mr. Ganley " “He’s a liar, a self-mythologiser, a snake-oil salesman”"

Whatever the case may be about his sales of snake oil to the Irish it is abundantly clear that he deliberately misled the Irish electorate with his "angry" statements to The Irish Independent last June just days before the Lisbon referendum.

Irish voters will have the opportunity to cast their vote on Mr. Ganley in on June 5.
If in doubt keep him out and vote for any other candidate except a Libertas candidate.

"

Libertas founder says he only donated €6,500 to group

By Michael Brennan Political Correspondent

Wednesday June 11 2008

ANTI-treaty campaigner Declan Ganley reacted angrily yesterday to questions about the financing of his Libertas group.

He said he had personally spent just under €6,500 -- the maximum personal donation allowable -- with the remainder of Libertas' €1.3m budget coming from donations from the public.

"This is the thing, it's untrue to say I have invested this money. We're getting donations in every day from business, from taxi drivers, from all sorts of people," he said.

In his final news conference in Dublin, he said the 'Yes' side was finding it very uncomfortable to see the people of Ireland rising up and saying 'No' to a treaty that was "clearly a bad deal for the people of Ireland and for all of the people of Europe".

"These people (the Libertas volunteers) are here of their own free will, they're not being paid, they're out there and we've got hundreds of people across this country campaigning for a 'No' vote because it's in the interest of our country and of all the citizens.

Mr Ganley then said: "Thank you" to reporters and walked off abruptly to the black-coloured 'Vote No to Lisbon' bus parked on Merrion Square.

His group's €1.3m budget is greater than the combined budgets of all the major political parties. Fianna Fail is spending €600,000, Fine Gael is spending €500,000 and Labour is spending about €200,000.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen attacked Libertas yesterday, saying the group was spending more money than all the political parties put together "and nobody knows where their money comes from".

Fine Gael European Affairs spokeswoman Lucinda Creighton called on the group to "come clean" on the source of its funding.

"It is extremely disturbing that a group that is outspending Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Labour put together will not disclose the sources of its funding," she said.

Mr Ganley said his group would provide full disclosure of its donations in accordance with the rules of the Standards in Public Office commission.

He accused the 'Yes' side of trying to bully potential 'No' voters -- trying to scare them. into changing their mind.

"Look at the French Foreign Minister (Bernard Kouchner) saying the first victims of a 'No' vote would be the Irish," he said.

- Michael Brennan Political Correspondent

Ganley says he gave €200,000 loan to Libertas

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/0919/1221773888299.html

THE FOUNDER of Libertas, business man Declan Ganley, says he gave a personal loan of €200,000 to help fund its campaign against the Lisbon Treaty.

Speaking to The Irish Times Mr Ganley said the organisation's spend on the campaign was "about €800,000". He said a number of people provided loans but he did not have a total figure for the amount lent. The money that did not come from loans came from donations from Irish people and companies, he said. "All of the money was raised in Ireland."

On Today FM's The Last Word Mr Ganley said: "The first loan that I gave was in the region of about €200,000." He later said this was the only loan.

During the Lisbon campaign the communications director for Libertas John McGuirk indicated it had a budget of €1.3 million. The law limits the amount an individual donor can give to a group such as Libertas in any one year to € 6,348.69. However, loans can be made as long as they are "bona fide", according to the Standards in Public Office Commission.

The Libertas website currently invites people to make donations, whether over the internet, by electronic transfer to its account in Tuam, Co Galway, or by cheque.

The leader of Fine Gael, Enda Kenny, and a spokesman for Minister for the Environment John Gormley, both said yesterday that the law on political fund-raising might have to be changed to increase transparency.

Asked yesterday if Libertas intended becoming involved in politics, Mr Ganley said that depended on whether Brussels and the Irish Government "respect the referendum result, the democratically expressed will of the people".

Speaking on RTÉ radio's News At One yesterday Mr Ganley said there was a need for "fresh blood" in Irish politics. "There is a need to grip the reins and take control of this mess that people like Dick Roche have got us into. Something needs to be done," he said. He was responding to Mr Roche who called Mr Ganley a "grade A hypocrite". Mr Roche said Mr Ganley had been saying there was a lack of transparency in Europe but his company, Rivada Networks, had secured substantial US government contracts using arrangements instituted to assist tribal corporations in Alaska. "I think anyone who reads into the arrangement of these contracts would see that they are quite bizarre."

Mr Ganley said if people like Mr Roche "had properly nurtured entrepreneurship instead of a stamp duty collecting, property inflating, bubble producing, economic process, we wouldn't find ourselves in the situation economically we are in now."

Mr Ganley is chief executive of a US company called Rivada Networks, which has a joint venture with an Alaskan native corporation, Nana Pacific. The joint venture, Rivada Pacific, has secured communications contracts worth $37 million in recent years from the US military, according to the website, www.fedspending.org. It's largest customer is the US Northern Command. Because of the involvement of the native Alaskan corporation, the joint venture is not subject to US procurement rules that would otherwise apply.

Mr Ganley told The Irish Times last night that Rivada didn't decide how the US authorities ran their tenders and he would not apologise to Mr Roche for his firm winning communications contracts.

"This has nothing to do with my business . . . Mr Roche won't abide by the will of the people . . . to say no to the Lisbon treaty. . ." he said.

Irish Youth Group Generation Yes starts live Lisbon lie buster. Libertas beware!

Generation Yes launching in Dublin 24 April 2009

[Redated editorial intended to annoy Libertas interns it worked ]

If candidates want up to date campaign material please email peoplekorps@gmail.com

Visit Generation Yes website

Their page Fight the Lies helps address the issues that Libertas use and used last year
http://www.generationyes.ie/fight-the-lies/

They will have a live lie busters to accommodate the new lies Libertas will produce as time goes on.

Fight the Lies

The Irish people deserve an honest debate on this Treaty, we promise that our campaign will base all our arguments on the facts, and will reference all our statements.

We don’t believe in attacking people personally, but we have zero tolerance for anyone who lies to the Irish people in this campaign. When people make false statements, we will respond immediately with the truth

LIE: EU laws are made by unelected elites.

THE TRUTH: Every EU law has to be approved by either the people’s directly elected MEPs, or by the elected government of the member states. That means no law can be passed without approval by your elected representatives. The Treaty increases the Parliament’s power further.

LIE: The EU wants to introduce conscription in Ireland.

THE TRUTH: There is no EU army, and there is no move toward conscription. Very few countries have conscription in their national armies, and many of them are phasing it out.Furthermore, close to one fifth of EU countries are neutral states, like Ireland.

We will be responding to lies as they happen here.

EU is Ireland's best friend, says student group

Irish Times Saturday, April 25, 2009

EUROPE IS “the best friend Ireland ever had”, according to a new pro-Lisbon campaign group launched in Dublin yesterday.

Calling itself Generation Yes, the organisation of college students and graduates was armed with the slogan “EU – a safe harbour in the financial storm” aimed at encouraging Ireland’s youth to vote Yes in a future referendum on the treaty.

Using new media options like Twitter, Facebook, blogs, text messaging and its own website www.generationyes.ie, the group says it will “outline really clear and understandable” explanations of the treaty and its benefits.

They plan to campaign on the streets, on campuses and to support other pro-treaty groups. Their press release highlights a Millward Brown IMS poll finding that of the 59 per cent of 25- to 34-year-olds who voted No last time, 42 per cent did so due to a “lack of knowledge or understanding”.

They also want the Government to “run the referendum over two days at the weekend” which would suit students better, according to campaign director Andrew Byrne, a former Trinity College students’ union president.

He said the campaign was “all just friends of ours” who were frustrated by the failure of politicians to properly explain the treaty the last time, or to campaign effectively, so they decided “we’ll do it ourselves”.

They recently started a Facebook page “and we have more than 800 members on that. I think Declan Ganley only has about 100,” he says of the Libertas anti-treaty campaigner.

“We’re a grassroots movement. We’re independent,” he insists, although he is a member of the Green Party. Hazel Nolan a UCC student and a member of the Labour Party, was involved with the Alliance for Europe in last year’s campaign.

“I think young people are taking it more seriously this time,” she says. Both insist they have no personal political ambition.

“I’m emigrating next year to America” says Mr Byrne, who will study in Chicago.

He stresses that Lisbon “is too important to leave it to the politicians” and he insists “we’re not funded by anybody”, although they are seeking funds through their website and “we’ll run table quizzes after the launch”. This campaign “is as genuine as it comes”, he says, estimating it will cost “a few thousand euro”.

About 20 young people attended the launch on Merrion Square, the boys wearing white T-shirts with the slogan “Yes, Yes, Yes”. Some of the girls wore pink T-shirts with the legend: “I only kiss boys who say Yes”, while other campaign members refused to wear the “chauvinistic” shirts. The T-shirt legend is meant to be humorous and to show “we’re not taking ourselves too seriously,” says the campaign director, but he concedes it may change.

Has Declan Ganley really read the Lisbon Treaty? Journalist have you asked him specific questions about the treaty?

Declan Ganley has made great mileage out of his claim to have read the Lisbon Treaty. I have never been convinced that he knows very much about it when he has been interviewed.

Can journalists start to spot check him on the Lisbon Treaty? Pick random passages and ask him what they are? A little Lisbon Treaty Q & A would be interesting.

I think the results will be fascinating.

Libertas Lisbon campaign lack of transparency exposed

In the run up to the Lisbon vote in Ireland the Forum on Europe set out to record people's views in order to allow for debate and for people to hear diverse views. In the below video Sean Ganley brother of Declan is described as a "citizen" and not a founder of Libertas.

In fact one year earlier Sean had been a founder of Libertas Ltd.
In 2004 he was working for Tigris Staffing a Ganley Group company based in Baghdad.

The founders of the Libertas Institute were:

Founder	Notes
Declan Ganley[2]	Associated with Ganley Group[3] and Rivada Networks.[4]
Naoise Nunn[2]	Associated with Rivada Networks.[2]
James O'Reilly[2]	Associated with Ganley Group[3] and Rivada Networks.[4][2]
Norrie Keane[2]	Associated with Rivada Networks.[2]
Martina Higgins[2]	Associated with Ganley Group[3] and Rivada Networks.[2]
Seán Ganley[2]	Brother of Declan.[2]
Dr. Chris Coughlan	Later president of the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland[2

Sean Ganley Listed merely as "Citizen" in Forum on Europe video despite his founding Libertas with his older brother Declan.

YouTube - Sean Ganley, Citizen

Libertas Election Financing ? How Libertas circumvent election laws to receive Ganley's money revealed by Polish Libertas VP

Vice President of Libertas Poland, Artur Zawisza, confirms funding circumvention.

In order circumvent the law regarding election financing Declan Ganley and his Libertas are reported to be using a clever ruse. Individual national branches are reported to be taking out bank loans which are secured by Declan Ganley according to one report.
These loan allow the national branch of Libertas to fund itself with money that originates in their own countries. However, it is reported that after the elections the national branches of Libertas will default on the loan allowing the banks to seek their repayment from the guarantor.

By using this facility the national branches of Libertas can flout their country's laws and receive as much cash as Ganley is prepared to give them.


As the "loans" from the banks are just that, loans, the upper limits on donations will also not apply. The fact that Declan Ganley will later repay the loans means that he technically is NOT funding the elections, they are bank loans are, he will be technically financially covering defaulted loans not the elections themselves directly.

Therefore when Ganley says that he will not be funding the European election he is technically correct. What he omitted to say was that he had worked out a cleaver scam that allows him to pay for the elections later while being able to deny that he is paying for the elections now. Ganley will be merely paying back loans that other people took out and he guaranteed.


This story is breaking in from Poland today with reports confirming that Libertas is availing of this loop hole in Polish electoral law which strictly outlaws Polish parties from taking money from foreign political parties and individuals.
According to one report
"Our electoral system, however, prohibits the financing of party committees and candidates from abroad. To circumvent this prohibition , Polish Libertas take out loans on which the security//property will be provided by an Irish multimillionaire. After the Polish campaign Libertas will not pay its debts, the guarantor will do so, that is, Ganley"'Dziennik': Start w wyborach? Ganley nam zap?aci

Thomas Butkiewicz writing for Dziennik says that one of the Polish Vice Presidents of Libertas, the League of Polish Families Daniel PAWŁOWIEC, said that Libertas would fully comply with funding laws.
However his co Vice President Artur Zawisza let the cat out of the bag by going further confirming both this source of funding and Declan Ganley's personal involvement in the ruse. ""The most important thing for banks is to assess the creditworthiness and the collateral. I know they consulted with Mr. Declan Ganleyem" - when asked about the source of funding election campaigns.
Original report

Google translate version

Official" - How to cheat the electoral commission
Google translate version


So far Libertas Poland is reported to have received 250,000 euro, Libertas Slovenia 250,000. euro and Libertas Lithuania has so far received 100,00 using this ruse.

According to a source are using this device throughout Europe to "circumvent the electoral law".


In Ireland in 2008 Ganley said his anti-Lisbon campaign was funded by many legal small donations but Ganley later admitted "loaning" Libertas 200, 000k. The source of the estimated 1.5 million euro that Libertas spent has never been disclosed.
This figure was more than twice what Ireland's senior government partner Fianna Fail spent.


How does a party that says it will bring democracy and transparency while fighting elites maintain credibility when they use such a ruse to deliberately circumvent national laws, while at the same time taking money
This lack of clarity and transparency and the deliberate searching out and use of loopholes is quite the opposite of what Declan Ganley is saying his party stands for.

Mr transparency Declan Ganley is leading this subterfuge.



Libertas Nein Danke note please repost this blog
Send updates to peoplekorps@gamil.com

Libertas plead ignorance over failure to provide SIPO with information

There is a thing called having your cake and eating it. Scandal plauged Declan Ganley and his motely crew of hirlings are great at telling us that they will bring transparency to politics and yet they withhold all information about their dodgy funding for the Lisbon vote in Ireland in June.

The fact that a US Defence contractor paid full time staff for Libertas is a key issue for subaltern Ganley. The tea-boy to the neocon warmongers if found to have broken electoral lawscould face crininal.

Ganley has been given until 30 March to provide proof to back up his claims regarding the funding. It took him months to declare that he himself had provided at least 200,000 euro. The SIPO enquiry should sharpen the focus of other european countries on Libertas funding in their states and also the potential sweetner deals, like the offer turned down by a Swedish party of one million euro to change their name to Libertas, must be examined.

Where are the millions coming from?.
Here are two pieces from today's Irish Times

Organisation says it was not informed of deadline

MARY MINIHAN and KATHRYN HAYES

LIBERTAS SAID it would not have been subject to such scrutiny by the Standards in Public Office Commission if it had campaigned for a Yes vote in the Lisbon Treaty referendum.

The organisation, founded by Declan Ganley, said it had not been informed of a deadline for the publication of the commission’s report.

The report said Libertas had failed to provide required information.

However, Libertas said in a statement it had an ongoing dialogue with the commission and remained willing to provide the information required by March 31st. Libertas said the report did not change “certain fundamental truths” about the Lisbon Treaty referendum.

“We note that the Liberal Group in the European Parliament has said it will provide whatever resources necessary in support of a Yes vote at a future referendum. One can only hope that the appropriate scrutiny will be given to this side of the campaign too.”

Commenting on Mr Ganley’s expected decision to declare himself a candidate in the European Parliament elections, Taoiseach Brian Cowen said yesterday it was Mr Ganley’s democratic right to run in elections but said the Standards in Public Office Commission expects everyone to “live by the same rules”.

Speaking during a visit to Limerick, Mr Cowen said: “We live in a democracy but I note from the Standards in Public Office Commission today that it expects everyone to live by the same rules as everyone else and I hope that whatever incomplete information he [Ganley] was able to give so far will be given.”

Minister of State for European Affairs Dick Roche said the commission report demonstrated the need for an immediate strengthening of electoral law.

Labour and Fine Gael also criticised Libertas in light of the report

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Libertas fails to co-operate with loans inquiry

MARY MINIHAN

LIBERTAS HAS failed to provide information on loans to the Standards in Public Office Commission, according to a report on the Lisbon Treaty referendum commissioned by Minister for the Environment John Gormley.

The standards commission said it wrote to Libertas regarding the provision of loans to fund its referendum campaign after Libertas informed the commission of a loan provided by its founder, Declan Ganley.

The commission asked whether other loans had been provided to fund the campaign. “At the time of writing this report, and despite a number of written and telephone reminders to Libertas, it has failed to provide the required information to the standards commission,” the report said.

Recommending ways to improve electoral legislation, the report proposed that failure to co-operate with inquiries “should constitute an offence”.

It also said political parties and “third parties” should be required to disclose details of expenditure on referendum campaigns. Individuals or groups, other than registered political parties or candidates at an election, which accept political donations exceeding €126.97, must register with the commission as “third parties”.

The commission said media reports prompted it to check that Libertas was complying with legislation regarding the opening and maintenance of a political donations account, as well as the non-acceptance of prohibited donations. It wrote to Libertas on June 19th, 2008, requesting details of any loans provided to it from a financial institution or other person for the purposes of funding its referendum campaign.

The report said Mr Ganley replied on August 13th, 2008, confirming that Libertas had received a personal loan from him “in respect of which a detailed legal agreement and repayment plan in accordance with commercial lending norms” had been agreed.

The commission wrote to Mr Ganley again on August 22nd, 2008, requesting a copy of the legal agreement and repayment plan for the loan made to Libertas.

“In spite of subsequent correspondence with Mr Ganley and his legal representatives, the information requested by the standards commission has not been provided by Libertas at the time of writing this report.” The commission also made inquiries about employees of Mr Ganley’s communications technology company, Rivada Networks. “It was suggested that persons employed by Rivada may have been paid by that company while working for Libertas on its referendum campaign,” the report said.

The commission said if that was the case it could be regarded as a donation to Libertas from Rivada. “If the total value of the services provided exceeded €6,348.69 in any year, Libertas would be required to refund the excess donation to Rivada.” Libertas confirmed that Rivada employees “who worked on the Libertas project did so in their spare time and on a voluntary basis”.

Last September the commission asked Libertas to provide further details of employees who worked on the referendum campaign. “At the time of writing this report, Libertas has not provided this information to the standards commission.”

The commission also looked into Libertas’s distribution of copies of a book, The Lisbon Treaty: the Readable Version, as part of its campaign.

“It was reported that the book ‘sells for €20’ and that 35,000 copies of the book had been given to Libertas by another organisation, the Foundation for European Democracy,” the report said.

Following an inquiry, Libertas confirmed on August 13th, 2008, that it had received a number of copies of this book from “the EU Democrats”.

Libertas said the books did not contain any political message and were distributed free of charge.

The commission wrote again to Libertas, advising that if the books were provided free when a charge normally applied and were given for the purposes of seeking to influence the outcome of the referendum, “it would be regarded as a donation to Libertas”.

Irish Minister for European Affairs, Dick Roche comments on passage of Lisbon Treaty by Czech Lower House

In a press release this evening the Irish government reacts to the passage of the Lisbon Treaty by Czech Lower House. This is a great defeat for Libertas ally Czech President Vaclav Klaus. Czech MPs voted by a massive majority of over two thirds (125 to 61) to adopt the document. The treaty must now pass the Czech senate.

Minister for European Affairs comments on passage of Lisbon Treaty by Czech Lower House

The Minister for European Affairs, Dick Roche, T.D., noted the passage this morning by a sweeping majority of the Czech Chamber of Deputies of the Treaty of Lisbon. The Treaty must now be approved by the Czech Senate. Speaking this morning, the Minister of State said:

“This morning’s vote by the Czech Chamber of Deputies is an important step forward for the ratification process in the Czech Republic. During my meetings with the Czech Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs, Alexandr Vondra, in Dublin earlier this week, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasised the importance of today’s vote.

“The passage of the Treaty through the Chamber of Deputies, by a sweeping majority, is a clear sign of the continuing feeling across Europe that the Treaty offers our best hope of equipping the Union with the tools we need to protect ourselves in these uncertain times.

“The Government continues to work closely with the Czech Presidency of the EU on the package of legal guarantees agreed at the December European Council to meet the concerns of the Irish people.

“I continued these discussions today in Dublin with my Swedish colleague, Cecilia Malmström, as we looked forward to the Swedish Presidency of the EU, which begins on 1 July.”

RTE Lisbon passes in Czech lower house
BBC Lisbon clears major Czech hurdle