Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF)

Lobbying Organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF)

Date published 22 Sep, 2017

Relevant Matter Public policy or programme

Public Policy Area Foreign Affairs

Period 1 May, 2017 to 31 Aug, 2017

Specific Details Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) raised the movement's concern that changing the Irish Navy’s involvement in operation PONTUS to operation SOPHIA could divert capacity and resources away from running a dedicated search and rescue response aimed at saving lives in the Central Mediterranean.

Intended results That the Irish government would support the continuation of the dedicated search and rescue operation PONTUS over that of the militarily focused operation SOPHIA.

Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity Alex Dunne

Did any Designated Public Official(DPO) or former Designated Public Official(DPO) carry out lobbying activities on your behalf in relation to this return? You must include yourself, and answer Yes, if you are a current DPO or a DPO at any time in the past. (What is a Designated Public Official?) No

Did you manage or direct a grassroots campaign? No

Was this lobbying done on behalf of a client? No

Lobbying activity

The following activities occurred for this specific Subject Matter Area.

Meeting (1)

Representatives from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) met Minister Kehoe in Government buildings. We provided the minister and his staff with eyewitness medical testimony of the type of wounds we were seeing patients present with once rescued and brought aboard our vessel in the central Mediterranean. MSF made it clear that Libya was not a safe place for migrants and refugees and that containing them there, or diluting the search and rescue capacity in the central Mediterranean, had dire humanitarian consequences. We highlighted that Ireland's role in actively performing search and rescue operations at sea under operation PONTUS was unique and should be replicated by other states; not diluted and pivoted into the militarily focused operation SOPHIA which does not have a dedicated search and rescue mandate.

Designated public officials lobbied

The following DPOs were lobbied during this return period on this specific Subject Matter Area. These DPOs were involved in at least one of the Lobbying Activities listed above, but not necessarily all of them. As returns are specific to a Subject Matter Area the above Lobbying Activities may be associated with multiple returns.

Clare Mungovan Special Adviser (Department of Defence)

Paul Kehoe Minister of State (Department of Defence)