The three Irishmen arrested in Colombia earlier this month were not representing Sinn Féin, according to party leader Mr Gerry Adams.
Mr Adams also criticised the endorsement by the Government and the SDLP of the revised Patten proposals, calling it a setback for policing in Northern Ireland.
In a statement released this evening, Mr Adams said that the first he had learned of the presence of the three men in Colombia was when they were arrested.
"I can say with certainty, they were not there representing Sinn Féin," he said. "I would have had to authorise such a project and I did not do so."
"The media blitz, political spins and propaganda surrounding the Colombia arrests is worthy of the trial by media experience of the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four," said Mr Adams.
He said that while he believes the men should be released, "efforts to make Sinn Féin accountable for these three Irish men are totally unjustified and serve no good purpose."
The three men, Mr Niall Connolly, Mr Martin McCauley and Mr James Monaghan, were arrested at Bogota airport on August 11th. They were formally charged with "suspected crimes of providing assistance to illegal activities" and with using false documents last week.
Senior US diplomats in Dublin subsequently raised concerns about the arrests during a meeting with Sinn Féin's Washington representative, Ms Rita O'Hare.
However, Mr Adams’ statement tonight denied any connection with the men. "Whatever the hype, the lies and the propaganda . . . or the implications in the USA arising from these arrests, Sinn Féin has no case to answer," he said.
Mr Adams also said that the move by the Government and the SDLP to back the Northern Ireland policing plan recently released by the British government was a "setback to the search for proper policing."
"At the very least their support for the British government’s policing plans is premature and short-sighted," he said. Mr Adams added that "the sensible thing" would have been for all parties representing nationalist Ireland to stand together "until the British government delivered on its obligations".
"Instead, it has been allowed to play the oldest trick in the book," he said. "It is divide and conquer time again."