Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to have an opportunity to move the motion, which allows Dáil Éireann to have a unified voice to express its concern at the continuing crisis in Darfur. The motion itself sets out the range of issues which makes the situation in Darfur so grave and complex. I wish to focus on a few key points and to bring the House up to date on the latest developments. While the situation is very complex, the conflict has since 2003 caused huge social upheaval and human suffering, which I witnessed when I visited Darfur last July. We cannot forget that basic point.

Estimates vary but we believe at least 200,000 people have lost their lives as a direct and indirect result of the conflict. Furthermore, more than 2 million people have been displaced from their homes and livelihood. Currently, 4 million people, two thirds of Darfur's population, are in continuing need of humanitarian aid. Faced with so serious and dangerous a situation, the international community has focussed on three main challenges, first, bringing aid to the millions who need it, second, trying to encourage the parties to the conflict to cease their violence and reach a political settlement, and, third, creating and deploying an international peacekeeping force that is sufficiently robust, large and well-equipped to provide the basic security which is essential if the first two goals — the delivery of humanitarian assistance and working towards a political settlement — are to be achieved.

As regards humanitarian assistance, Ireland has provided more than €16 million in aid to Darfur since 2004. Total Irish Aid funding to Sudan in the same period exceeds €32 million. I salute the courage and dedication of the UN agencies and NGOs, including those from Ireland, who work so tirelessly there. The dedication of the mostly young people who work in Darfur is an inspiration to us all. However, continuing violence and attacks on humanitarian workers are making it very difficult for agencies on the ground. Mr. Jan Egeland, the UN humanitarian relief co-ordinator, warned the Security Council on 21 November that large parts of Darfur are seeing a meltdown of law and order. He cautioned that the rampant insecurity was taking its toll on the delivery capacity of an increasingly beleaguered humanitarian community and warned that, if that trend continued, the situation in Darfur would spiral out of control.

The shrinking space for humanitarian delivery is of great concern to the Irish NGOs. Attacks that affect humanitarian workers are in direct contravention of international humanitarian law. We are concerned about the safety of our own people, about the NGO community in general and about their capacity to deliver the assistance they are there to supply.

The collective efforts of the international community to restore peace and security have not succeeded. Successive ceasefires have been broken by all sides. The Sudanese Government has failed to implement its pledges to disarm the Janjaweed. A recent report by the UN's panel of experts monitoring the arms embargo indicates that it is being blatantly violated by all parties.

While the Darfur peace agreement was rightly hailed as providing a comprehensive framework for the restoration of stability, it has been seriously undermined by the fact many major rebel groups have not signed it. Little has been achieved in terms of implementation. Both signatories and non-signatories have been intensifying their military activities. AMIS has done a reasonable job in the areas in which it has operated but has been hampered by its small size, logistical and command and control shortfalls, lack of enforcement capacity and refusal of co-operation by the parties.

Due to concerns about AMIS's ability to fulfil its role, the international community, including the AU itself, agreed earlier this year on the need for transition of this force to a UN mission. On 31 August the UN Security Council authorised the sending of 17,300 UN troops and 5,300 civilian police to Darfur to support implementation of the peace agreement. However, the resolution invited the consent of the Sudanese Government. Since President Bashir remains firmly opposed to the implementation of this Security Council decision, it has not been possible to deploy a UN peacekeeping force.

In an effort to unravel the current difficulties, the UN Secretary General and the chairperson of the commission of the African Union co-chaired a meeting of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and a number of African states, including Sudan, in Addis Ababa on 16 November last. It was agreed at the meeting that the UN and the African Union should within 15 days organise a meeting of the signatories and the non-signatories of the Darfur peace agreement with a view to reaching agreement before the end of 2006 on the amendments to the agreement which would enable the non-signatories to adhere to it. The African Union's chief mediator for Sudan, Mr. Salim Ahmed Salim, is visiting Khartoum to move the process forward. The 16 November meeting called on all parties to commit immediately to a cessation of hostilities. In light of the regional dimensions of the conflict, Chad and Sudan were urged to stop the fighting along their common border in Darfur and to respect previous peace commitments.

The meeting agreed to expand the UN's support to the AU mission in Sudan, taking into account the Secretary General's proposals for a phased approach to the strengthening of the peacekeeping operation in Darfur. More significantly, agreement in principle was reached on the deployment of a hybrid AU-UN force in Darfur. Some important issues remain to be resolved, however, including the size of the force and its command, control and reporting arrangements. I welcome these developments, especially the agreement in principle on a hybrid UN-AU force. Early acceptance by Sudan of the outstanding issues is essential, however. Sudan will give its considered response at tomorrow's meeting of the AU peace and security council in Abuja.

Although recent signals from Khartoum are not encouraging, I appeal in the strongest terms to President al-Bashir to endorse the agreement. The UN Secretary General's proposals meet Sudan's criteria that the peacekeeping force in Darfur should be basically African and that the African Union should maintain a strong leadership role in it. While there have been too many false dawns in this conflict for us to be foolishly optimistic about the present situation, we must never despair. We owe it to the people of Darfur and their suffering to continue to support them and to work for a solution to their plight, no matter how long or difficult the path. The Government will continue to offer major financial assistance to Darfur for as long as it is needed. It will also continue to use all avenues and opportunities to highlight the crisis and to urge concerted action to resolve it.

Last July, I was the first EU Foreign Minister to visit Darfur since the signing of the peace agreement. I met the Sudanese Foreign Minister in July in Khartoum and again in September in New York. Through bilateral meetings and letters, I have urged the leaders of key states such as Egypt, South Africa and Ethiopia to use their influence with Sudan. It is essential that efforts to resolve the situation in Darfur remain at the top of the international agenda. Ireland will continue to play a full and active role in these efforts. I will continue to explore every avenue open to us. In doing that, I know I carry with me the strong support of the House and the Irish people. I am pleased to commend the motion to the House.

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