Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 10 October 2012

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade

Discussion with Ambassador of Islamic Republic of Iran

3:40 pm

Photo of Michael MullinsMichael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the ambassador to this meeting. I welcome the fact that it may soon be possible to resolve the issue regarding the export of beef to Iran and I also welcome the invitation extended to the Chairman and members of the committee to travel to Iran and help in the ongoing discussions.

The President of Iran, speaking at a recent session of the United Nations General Assembly, made a very interesting and enlightening speech, where he talked about the problems and injustices in the world and the need for a new order and a fresh way of thinking. He made some interesting points and spoke of:

- An order in which man is recognized as God's Supreme Creature, enjoying material and spiritual qualities and possessing a pure and divine nature filled with a desire to seek justice and truth.
- An order that aims to revive human dignity and believes in universal happiness and perfection.
- An order which is after peace, lasting security and welfare for all walks of life around the globe.
- An order that is founded upon trust and kindness and brings thoughts, hearts and hands closer to each other. Rulers must love people.
This is wonderful but when one looks at the human rights situation in Iran, one wonders if the President is signalling a new vision for Iran and a new way of addressing the problems that have been highlighted by so many of my colleagues today. We are all alarmed and horrified at the reports of summary executions, torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, the closing down of newspapers and websites and the threats of the death penalty against Pastor Nadarkhani, whose only crime has been his conversion to Christianity. How can President Ahmadinejad speak in those terms when the reality in Iran is so different? Is there new thinking in that country which will address these issues as a matter of urgency? Does the ambassador foresee a situation where EU countries and the United Nations will look very differently on Iran and on the sanctions, with a view to lifting them? I ask the ambassador to help me understand the dichotomy between what the President says and the reality on the ground. Can he convince me that what his President has said is likely to happen in the future?

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