The Independent Senator Michael McDowell has been asked by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Simon Coveney, to delay a Seanad debate on the detention of Irish man, Richard O Halloran, as negotiations are at a delicate stage and such a debate could set that process back .
Senator McDowell told the Seanad this morning that he is giving the Minister a two-week deadline, otherwise he will press ahead with plans to debate the matter in the Upper House.
Richard O Halloran, an Irish citizen, has been in China since February 2019. He had travelled there to resolve a dispute between his employer and Chinese authorities but has since been detained. Mr O Halloran works for the aircraft leasing company, China International Aviation Leasing Service (CALS Ireland).
Independent Senator Michael McDowell will table a motion in the Seanad, condemning the detention of Irish citizen Richard O Halloran in China.
The father-of-four has not seen his family since February 2019 and has been asked to pay €36m to secure his release. There are no allegations of wrongdoing against him.
He was detained due a dispute between Chinese authorities and the aircraft leasing company that he works for, China International Aviation Leasing Service (CAILS Ireland).
Min Jiedong, the chairman of CAILS Ireland, is in jail following allegations regarding the defrauding of Chinese investors through a peer-to-peer and crowdfunding scheme to buy an aircraft.
Photograph By JIBC
Ivy Li, a core member of Canadian Friends for Hong Kong, a pro-democracy group, demonstrates outside the PRC Consulate General in an undated photo Photograph By Handout
Intelligence analyst and private investigator Scott McGregor views the JIBC program for Chinese police recruits as a threat to national security Photograph By Chung Chow
‘Xi Jinping Thought’ begins at a young age for those selected to enforce Chinese Communist Party laws Photograph By WeChat
Vancouver Police Department Const. Terry Yung embraced by PRC Consulate General Tong Xiao Ling at a public event in 2019 Photograph By Ina Mitchell
Intelligence analyst and private investigator Scott McGregor views the JIBC program for Chinese police recruits as a threat to national security