FOI issue re: potential flagging on Garda & Customs system?

edener

Hi, please bear with me while I explain my predicament, apologies if this all seems too long. Some parts may seem outlandish but I assure you, it is all true. I'm Irish, I live here in Ireland. I do not have a criminal record. Recently I made an FOI request to the Gardai, to establish that 1) I do not have a criminal record and 2) requesting the release of any and all information which they hold on me on their system. I have reason to believe that the response from the authorities was not full and transparent.

I am slightly political though I am not affiliated with any political party or any organisation. Last year (with the assistance of my, unfortunately, generally apolitical spouse, who luckily is great with IT!) I set up a website which is a little political and which supports and calls for the recognition of an unrecognised pro-Russian country (some would view it as a region of a country). I have also sought information as to how someone (that would be me) could assist on the ground in opposing what I would view as Ukrainian terror forces in Donbass. That said, I have not travelled to Donbass. Now people can by all means disagree with my politics and world view, however, as long as I don't engage in illegality I have the right to freedom of association and freedom of expression.

It is possible that both these things (the website and seeking information on assisting in Donbass), even though neither is illegal, has brought me to the attention of the security services in Ireland, maybe Garda intelligence (Crime & Security Branch) and/or G2. I believe my name may now be on a list, even though I have done nothing illegal nor broken any laws. Soon after the website went live it was visited by the US State Department several times, guess they don't appreciate the site - we can track IP's. And a short few weeks after having been in contact with someone on the ground in Donetsk I get a call on my mobile, number blocked, I answered only to hear a looped message with my wifes voice saying "hey baby", over and over. My wife was sitting next to watching tv at the time. I smiled to myself (knowing what had just happened) and hung up, checked received calls, quelle surprise, no trace of it.

Impossible to know which intelligence agency is responsible, could be one here in Ireland though unlikely, however it could have been the Ukrainians who intercepted my initial call to Donetsk and tapped into and recorded subsequent calls between my wife and myself - it has been reported in the media that the Ukrainians do intercept calls to and from the rebel controlled region. What I have written may sound a little far fetched but it's true.

I have reason to believe I am on some list here in Ireland, that my name has been flagged, because about 2 or 3 weeks ago I did a day trip from Ireland to Belgium and upon my return to Ireland was stopped, searched, taken to a room and interrogated for somewhere between 60 and 90 minutes. I was never informed of my rights, questions ranged from everything from where I went to school, where I grew up, where I lived, what my spouse studied at university, what medications I was on (I was even asked to show a pain medication patch I have to wear on my body), why I travelled to Belgium and on and on. That said they were generally polite and yes, I realise they were simply doing their job. It was intimated by one of the customs agents that my name had been flagged.

It played out like this: I was stopped re-entering the country carrying 2kg of tobacco - which as long as you keep a receipt you are, under EU law, entitled to bring into your home country from another EU member State for personal use (1kg is simply a guideline, 2kg is allowed if for personal use) - I answered the questions asked and signed some form confirming it was for personal use, while I was doing that my passport was taken and checked, I was then asked to go to an office for further questioning, when I said that I thought it had been sorted (the little tobacco situation) I was told yes but that my name had been checked on their system......So it appears the authorities have flagged me, have me on some list or another. How can I vindicate my rights as both an Irish citizen and EU citizen to ensure that 1) I am not harassed and 2) the authorities release any and all information which they hold on me?

Again, people may not agree with my politics, some will, some won't, however this is about someones right to go about their business unencumbered, especially when someone has not committed any crime. This is about the right to exercise ones freedom of expression and freedom of association without harassment. And it is about someones right to get a full and frank response to an FOI request. I was thinking of approaching a solicitor, I was also thinking of trying to approach Crime & Security directly or raising it with the Ombudsman here in Ireland and/or the EU Ombudsman if applicable. There may be other routes. I am not a terrorist, I am not a "subversive" and I am not a "security threat". I am simply a very ordinary, generally quite boring, person whose politics and point of view may differ from that of Western governments, the only "crimes" I have committed is setting up a website to express my opinion and making a few phone calls asking how someone can help others if they wanted to.

As this is "Legal Discussion", what are my rights to ensure I am not harassed and to ensure I obtain a full and definitive FOI response? What can I do if I believe the State is holding back information which it has on me? Thanks.