Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 12, 32 and 46 together.

As Deputies will be aware, and as stated previously in the House on many occasions, most recently on 16 September, the Government is deeply concerned about the situation in Burma and plays an active role in international efforts to bring about positive change there. It is worth reminding ourselves that Seanad Éireann was the first parliamentary assembly to pass a resolution on the incarceration of Aung San Suu Kyi.

As the Minister for Foreign Affairs indicated in a statement on 11 August, the arrest, trial and conviction of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on the most spurious of charges further compounds the already bleak situation in Burma, where repression against members of the opposition, the ethnic groups and the population at large continues unabated and human rights and fundamental freedoms are systematically denied.

The sentence provides clear evidence of the regime's intent to silence Aung San Suu Kyi in the lead-up to the elections it plans to hold next year. These elections will be held on the basis of a discredited new constitution, which excludes her from running in them. The treatment meted out to Aung San Suu Kyi suggests that the Burmese regime is determined to continue its illegal rule without regard for the will of the Burmese people, in blatant disregard of the demands of the international community, including the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, and his predecessor.

I welcome the efforts being made in this regard by the Secretary-General and his team, and by ASEAN leaders, to secure the early release of Aung San Suu Kyi. Despite the fact that the military junta released a small number of political prisoners on Friday last as part of an amnesty it has announced for 7,000 prisoners, Aung San Suu Kyi was not among them. Regrettably, I do not have at present any reliable information indicating that her release may be imminent.

At present, more than 2,200 political prisoners are serving sentences in deplorable conditions, many on questionable charges. The elections which the Burmese authorities are planning to hold next year will have no credibility or legitimacy if they are not opened up fully to the opposition and to all ethnic groups.

Efforts by the international community - including those by the UN Secretary-General himself during his visit to Burma in July and by his good offices mission - to secure the release of political prisoners and the launching of a process of national dialogue, unfortunately, have been rejected by the regime to date.

In the circumstances, Ireland favours strong international action against the Burmese regime, including sanctions and an arms embargo; in fact the latter should be automatic. We have been among those who urged a strengthening of EU sanctions in response to the developments anticipated following the recent arrest and trial of Aung San Suu Kyi. After her conviction, I am happy to note, the EU took immediate action to extend its sanctions against the regime and the judges involved in her farce of a trial and sentencing. These additional restrictive measures came into force on 13 August.

Ireland will continue to work in the EU and UN frameworks, and with the countries of the region, to do all possible to advance our objectives on Burma and to press for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners there. The current session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva from 14 September to 2 October offers another such opportunity, and we will use it.

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