Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Peter Power for appearing before the committee and being so informative. It is refreshing to get up-to-date information from people on the ground who have an understanding of the situation and are able to convey that to the rest of us. What I cannot understand in regard to this particular disaster is that with modern technology now so adequately sophisticated, it is possible to predict a tsunami and all kinds of disasters well in advance, at least 48 hours in advance, although, as my colleague said, 48 hours may not be enough. Similarly, in the aftermath, I cannot understand how it is not possible to co-ordinate the formation of a grid which is done in agricultural circles on an ongoing basis here and allocate responsibility to particular areas and sectors and have a co-ordinating body. That can be done within two or three hours. The satellite communications system is in place.

I welcome Mr. Power's remarks about the engineers Ireland was able to send out who set up the communications so NGOs could set up the communications network themselves. That is important. However, a sequence of events needs to take place shortly. Everybody condemned the looting which American marines came in to quell. That was a great idea but if people had something to eat, there would be no need for looting in the first place. That is not in any way to denigrate the efforts of the marines in that situation.

The major issue is what we talked about last week. When we saw the big heavy helicopters coming, those that could shift large amounts of material in the shortest possible time, we recognised that is how one deals with a task of that nature. There are two requirements, first, a code must be assigned to the scale and magnitude of the disaster straightaway through communications and, second, how to co-ordinate the efforts. Forty eight hours is a long time for small children if they are trapped. I compliment those agencies who were there from the beginning and got in as quickly as possible. However, I would be critical of the international co-ordination effort in that it did not really respond in the way it should have responded to a disaster of that magnitude.

Returning to the issue of Syria, currently there is a global drain on resources. In places such as Syria where there is an internal conflict there has to be a recognition at some stage that civilians will suffer heavily unless there is a recognised method whereby they can be an intervention on their behalf. We have to lay down clear guidelines as to what should happen in the event of no provision being made for them. Attempts were made to do this in Bosnia but they failed and we know that they failed in Srebrenica also. The safe havens failed simply because the international community did not live up to its commitments and expectations and, as a result, many died. That will live on in our memories and it will live on, particularly in the memories of those who are directly affected, to the eternal shame of the international community. To what extent, with particular reference to children, can UNICEF Ireland and the international agencies co-ordinate a recognition of the need to put in place a shield to help the refugees who immediately follow in the wake of a military conflict such as that in Syria and in a number of other locations?