Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Power. I suppose the scale and magnitude of the issues in Syria and the Philippines are difficult to take in. Mr. Power has been graphic in his description of what is happening. We have seen it on the television but I am unsure whether we get any sense of how it is affecting people thousands of miles away. At the centre of the problem is the actions of man, whether it is the crazy weather or otherwise. Other countries could be affected similarly. Unfortunately, in the case of the Philippines, there was the earthquake to which Mr. Power referred and now this.

I notice that the blame game has started within the Philippines. There were tensions with regard to the Marcos regime, and now the Aquino Government is blaming local government and so on. It is a question of the structures that are in place. Mr. Power referred to the scale of the problem. How do we deal with it if the President is blaming local government but local government has been destroyed? There are structures in place, including the police and the army. Are they still operating? How do they tie in with the rescue effort? Are they all over the place as well?

Mr. Power referred to gender-based violence. Amid all the devastation, people are being raped. I cannot understand how people can do this. UNICEF concentrates on children. What can be done for the children? There is a major sex industry in the Philippines. What can UNICEF do in this regard? Mr. Power referred to the children that had been displaced, and mentioned the need for power structures to enable contact and so on. What can UNICEF do to try to get those families back in touch with each other? Is it the case that these children are now orphans? We have seen graphic pictures on the television screens of children burying bodies. Where are the adults? What is happening? That is why I have asked about the structures that exist, including the army, the police and local government structures. What is happening in this regard?

Mr. Power referred to the administration of polio vaccine. I imagine there are still structures on the government side. Is it the case that they do not have immunisation facilities? Mr. Power made reference in particular to those under two years of age being in danger. What can be done?

I thank Mr. Power for the work he, his organisation and the other aid groups are doing. We need to start with small steps and start tackling it. They scale of the devastation is beyond anyone.