Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

On the problems with the terrain, one arose because Chad does not have any port, thus necessitating the shipment of much of the equipment to Douala in Cameroon, from where it had to be brought across country to Goz Beida at the other end of Chad. A certain amount of damage was done on this long journey which I understand was in excess of 2,000 km. The damage has, by and large, been repaired. I inspected certain items in kitchens etc., that should have been working when I arrived but which were not because they had been damaged in transit. This does not surprise me given the terrain. I plan to return to Chad after the rainy season to see how those on the mission are settling in.

I told Deputy Deenihan that I would raise the issue of telephone calls and when in Chad, I asked a specific question about it. I was told that, ordinarily in a four-month tour of duty, there were 45 minutes of free telephone access. In the case of a six-month tour of duty, one has 90 free minutes. However, there is now an alternative to the telephone, that is, the Internet. I was assured by the Irish force commander that, while the authorities were trying to adhere as closely as possible to the 45-minute rule, they were being fairly flexible. He told me troops had virtually unlimited access to the Internet, by way of e-mail and voicemail. There are plenty of opportunities to communicate with home.

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