M J Nolan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)

I commend the Minister, his Department and the Defence Forces on agreeing to send members of our Defence Forces to Chad. Like previous speakers I acknowledge the huge problems they will face when they go to Africa. The concern of the Government and of the European Union about the situation not just in Chad and its neighbouring countries but on most of the continent of Africa is a source of ongoing concern to the wider public and democracies in general.

On a personal note I am hugely disappointed that the countries of Africa, which have come from a background of colonisation but which received their independence, for complex reasons appear unable to embrace the concept of democracy. We have sham democracies in a number of African states. Many African countries have great natural resources such as mineral wealth and oil potential but, unfortunately, they have not been able to benefit to the extent they should from their great natural resources. It is incumbent on the European Union, the United States and other developed countries to assist where possible. Just sending money and food is not the answer. We must be able to assist in educating the populations of African states because without education we are going nowhere and throwing good money after bad.

This debate relates to the posting of 400 Irish troops to help the situation in Chad. We have a strong and proud record in peacekeeping going back to the 1960s when we went to the Congo. That mission was followed by one to Cyprus. The most successful mission in which we were involved was UNIFIL in southern Lebanon. From a professional military point of view, all of these missions have been very good for morale and the training of the Defence Forces. On the completion of every mission the personnel have been commended on the manner in which they carried out their duties.

Lieutenant General Pat Nash is the force commander and I wish him every success. I noticed in some earlier debates he had received promotion to Lieutenant General. It is a credit to the Defence Forces that the force commander is a member of the Irish Defence Forces. Based on our record in peacekeeping in previous missions I have no doubt the higher level of military management will be more than capable of dealing with what the soldiers who are posted to Chad will have to face. The vast majority, if not all, of the senior Army officers have served overseas on various missions.

The transfer from tribal rule to democratic rule in Africa has not happened at the pace many of us would like. The losers in many cases are the local people, especially women and children. The main purpose of the mission to Chad is to provide some form of protection to this vulnerable part of the population, many of whom are fleeing hostilities in their home areas. We are still dealing with conflicts in so many areas that the troubles in Chad and the Central African Republic are only two of many that need to be addressed. Corruption is endemic in African countries and we will not make progress unless we reach a stage where we can educate people and get rid of corruption.

I commend the Minister on his statement on Army deafness. This is an old chestnut of mine. I especially commend him given his background in the legal profession on having the courage to say what he did in this regard. I believe the legal profession behaved scandalously in its abuse of that scheme. Some solicitors did the legal profession a disservice in the manner in which they abused that scheme. I know this at first hand because former members of the Defence Forces came to me and told me they were actively canvassed to put in a claim which was not the purpose of that scheme. In some cases when former soldiers did not want to make a claim they were scorned and made to look foolish just because they were principled enough not to make a claim as they genuinely did not have a case to make under the Army deafness scheme. I wish to put that on record.

The activities of the rebel groups will eventually be sorted out in many of the African countries, especially in Chad where we are going, but that will not happen until a political agreement is reached. A far greater threat to most African states comes from the activities of criminal gangs. While we can get over the political aspects of many of the problems, the existence of political gangs where there is a great deal of unemployment is something with which these new democracies will have to come to grips. Unemployment and a lack of sustainable investment are major shortcomings which will have to be addressed. The European Union and the United States will have to play a very active part in this regard.

The mass displacement of local populations is of huge concern, as is the scale of mass migration. These countries do not have the means to deal with such humanitarian crises. When one adds natural disasters to the mix, the scale of the problem has to be seen to be believed. The new force being despatched should not underestimate the task ahead of it. It is going there to protect some of the most vulnerable people on this planet. The anecdotal evidence we hear about some of the scandals taking place out there suggests that the challenge facing the Defence Forces is not to be underestimated. Women who have escaped horrific situations in their own homelands are now facing the problem of being assaulted and raped in refugee camps where they sought shelter and protection. It is the duty of our Army personnel who will be deployed to Chad to defend these people. It is important that we do our bit to bring peace and security to the region and that we can give some form of safety and security to the refugees.

I wish every member of the Defence Forces who goes to Chad a safe and fruitful mission. I commend the Minister on his stewardship of the Department to date.

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