Labhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

I dtosach, cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, Deputy Michael Kitt. Tá an-áthas orm go bhfuil seans againn arís an t-ábhar seo a phlé. Bíonn seans againn gach bliain é a dhéanamh agus cuireann sé an-áthas orm na rudaí bunúsacha a mbíonn le rá ag muintir an tSeanaid anseo. Tá sé soiléir freisin go bhfuil an-aontas eadrainn maidir leis an gcás atá á phlé againn anseo inniu.

The mere fact that we are discussing overseas development in the Seanad is a measure of our compassion as a country and an appreciation of how lucky we are to be in a position to aid countries less fortunate than ours. Indeed, we have a distinguished record when it comes to sharing the goods of this life, which we are fortunate to have, with other countries. It is part of our history because when we look back on Irish history, we see the many challenges we faced and how lucky we were to have people abroad who came to our aid. To this day they have become part of our folklore, right down to the American Indians who, despite not having much wealth, were still prepared to make a contribution to help save us from the pit of deprivation in which we found ourselves at one time. This shows that such initiatives are not forgotten after one year, and the same is true of Ireland.

When one travels to any of those countries which have emerged from that background and are now much more stable and successful and talk to any of their citizens, Ireland, too, is part of their folklore. The always recall, looking back on history, how we came to their aid when they needed it most. Irish compassion and charity, however, does not start with the formalisation of overseas aid and has, in fact, existed for many centuries. One of the reasons is that we were always motivated by our religious beliefs. It was an inherent tenet of Christianity that one should help one's neighbour whether he or she was next door or in some other part of the world. As a result, those in the front line of the church were prepared to travel abroad, sometimes in the most difficult of situations. The more I read about it the more I realise what great heroes and heroines we had. I was recently reading a book about the religious orders that went to China in the 1950s and 1960s and the conditions under which they lived as well as the brutality they experienced. The author, who was a priest, said that if there was no God, then we had all been rightly fooled.

When one reflects on the strength of character those people had, it is no wonder that we have inherited that same type of philosophy and I am glad that is the case. Obviously many of the disaster areas of the world have different bases from which the countries concerned find themselves in such a position. It is not always down to the forces of nature or an act of God. Very often it is a case of political greed involving people who want to take power, as well as all the excesses of violence and terrorism which derive from this. Senator Ross has touched on this issue, namely, one of the challenges we face when we try to provide aid in a county is to be quite sure that it is getting into the right hands and will be used in the most productive way possible. The Irish Government has done an excellent job in that regard. I recall saying this to the Minister of State's brother when he was in the Seanad in a previous incarnation. The efforts which are made and the courage displayed, as well as the independence of thought underpinning it, cannot be matched, I believe, by any country in the world, even with bigger administrative structures and back-up. I am quite happy that a very strong and definite effort is being made in that regard.

When one looks back at the United Nations Millennium Declaration it is quite evident that its framers directed their thoughts in the right direction. Obviously one of them was to health, to get rid of HIV-AIDS. The most shocking thing, when one thinks about it, is the fact that medicines are available which could help the unfortunate victims. Since they are patented, however, and in the hands of the large conglomerates, they will not be made available at a reasonable cost. They could be made available at perhaps 2% or 3% of the cost if the will was there to do it.

The €815 million we spend is a good sum and we are heading in the right direction towards achieving the targeted 0.7% of gross national product by 2012. Politically as well, however, we can help with overseas development by going after those people and embarrassing them specifically into releasing their hold on these particular medicines, even if only for a short term, for those parts of the world that need them so much.

Senator O'Toole set the right tone in a broader way in his contribution. He made the point that I have made so often about other war-torn areas. Very often we do not practise diplomacy or behave in a manner that would impress a nation. We wait until there are extreme circumstances and then behave in a gung ho manner in the belief we can force people to accept our position. I am certain that military oppression never works in the long run, nor does trying to starve a people into submission. When we talk of sanctions or designations in respect of various groups, we should be very careful that those on the receiving end are not the most vulnerable. Just as a charity's actions become folklore, the vulnerable and their succeeding generations will remember what we did to them at the very time they needed help most.

It is a question of raising morale. There are more than 950 million people worldwide in abject poverty and all go to bed hungry. We in Ireland do not know what this means and I am sure many of our consciences are stirred at times when we are throwing out excess food and food that is no longer within date. I am sure our consciences are stirred when we realise the people in areas where hunger is widespread could have had access to the food we throw in our bins.

Rather than spending billions of euro or dollars on war, would it not be much better if leaders came forward to say that enough is enough? Humanity must be our driving force in life. Very often one leader has proven he can change the world. Had the leaders of the United Nations and European Union allowed humanity to prevail and obviated the need to spend money as a result of our not respecting other people's opinions and the failure to practise diplomacy, with all its strengths, it is quite possible they could have changed the world such that there would not be millions dying of AIDS and hunger every year. In saying this, I am not referring solely to the UN millennium development goals.

I compliment the Minister of State and the Government because I genuinely believe we still provide moral leadership. Irrespective of the size of our nation, it is still a great moral force in the world, just as the people who went before us down through the centuries were a great moral force. I wish the Government the very best of luck in the work it is doing.