Senator Barry Ward welcomes the lifting of travel restrictions on Richard O’Halloran

A Fine Gael Senator has warmly welcomed the lifting of travel restrictions on Richard O’Halloran, who had been prevented from leaving China for three years, despite not having been charged with, tried for, or convicted of, any wrongdoing.

Senator Barry Ward said, “Richard’s release will come as a massive relief to his wife and children, and the many friends and colleagues who have been campaigning for his release.

“Richard has been through a desperate ordeal and faced extraordinarily difficult circumstances even though he has not committed any crime. Today marks the end of a long and uncertain road for him, for his wife Tara, and for his children Ben, Amber, Isabella and Scarlett.

“I have been in regular contact with Minister Simon Coveney on this issue for a long time and I am aware of the extremely delicate work that he has done with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi; our Ambassador in Beijing, Ann Derwin; and various officials here and in China.

“I am very grateful to Minister Coveney for his dedication to this issue, often behind the scenes and often in the teeth of public criticism. The fact that he never gave up and always put Richard’s welfare first is a credit to his sense of public duty and it is a relief that his work has finally borne fruit.

“China has once again flaunted the rule of law and has used Richard O’Halloran as a human pawn in an abuse of process designed to recover monies for shareholders who lost money invested with Min Jiedong and CALS. It is an affront that Richard has been forced to be away from his family for three years, but a huge result that the situation has now been resolved,” Senator Ward concluded.