Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 18 April 2019

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence

Humanitarian Situation in Yemen: Oxfam

Mr. Jim Clarken:

I am not sure if the Deputy asks that question in a political context as opposed to a humanitarian one but either way it is important. According to the UN and everybody else working in the area, including Oxfam, this is the world's worst humanitarian crisis by a distance. It should be front-page news all the time. It should be constantly in the public mind. There are issues around access from a media perspective. It is not an easy place to access. However, that is not to suggest that we should not continue to work on it. We need to examine how we can influence all of the key actors to ensure there is media access because Governments and people respond when they clear on what is happening. We need to work harder to make that happen.