Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

The Taoiseach said he will attend the EU-Africa Summit before the January Council meeting. What is his view of President Robert Mugabe attending that summit, given the current plight of the Zimbabwean people? Does the Taoiseach feel anything useful will be achieved by the Irish Government being represented at that summit, without in some way specifically noting the state to which President Mugabe has reduced that country? Like all colonial histories and their aftermaths, that of Zimbabwe is complex. However, the state of affairs in Zimbabwe is such that people are dying there. Irish Aid is assisting but it is not meant to be a pushover for what has become an extremely harsh regime that no longer has anything good to offer its own people. Will the Taoiseach comment on what line he will take in this regard?

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