Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)

Tá an-áthas orm seans a bheith agam labhairt ar an rún seo sa Dáil, mar tá dea-scéal ag baint leis. Ar ndóigh, tá dea-scéalta ag teastáil go géar sna laethanta atá againn faoi láthair. In these gloomy and uncertain times of unprecedented economic recession, it is uplifting to debate a positive motion such as this. The EUFOR TCHAD-RCA mission, which is now coming to a close, has been under the overall command of Lieutenant General Pat Nash, who has done a great job. I add my congratulations to those offered by the Minister of State and Deputy O'Dowd.

The operation encompasses Chad and the Central African Republic. The region has improved in terms of safety and security for refugees, displaced persons and the population in general. Deputy O'Dowd referred to the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against the Sudanese President, Omar al-Bashir, with regard to criminal activities of great concern to the court. The Chinese authorities have sought the suspension of the case against the Sudanese President. The licences of between six and ten NGOs operating in Darfur have been revoked and this is a serious matter. One of the NGOs affected is Oxfam, which works with 600,000 people in north Sudan, of whom 400,000 are in Darfur. The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has noted that this is a serious setback to the lifesaving operations in Darfur and has urged the Government of Sudan to restore the NGOs to operational status. We all echo his call.

The concern we have is the effect this may have on further refugees coming from Darfur and the consequences for the area in terms of the operation of Irish troops. I visited Abeche and N'Djamena in Chad but I did not get as far as Goz Beida. To see our troops perform a task at least as well as anywhere else in the world is uplifting. Terrain is hostile, hot and barren. Uncertainty exists because of bandits and militia groups. Have there been recent security reports on the possible consequences of developments in Sudan with regard to the action taken by the International Criminal Court? I visited one of the refugee camps and got the feeling that while the Irish troops have improved the situation a great deal many of the refugees would not have a great inclination to return home for a long time. Even though they are not very good, the conditions under the EUFOR mission, which will continue under the blue hatted mission, are better than conditions in Sudan.

When this motion was being considered by the committee, I asked the Minister how long he would expect the Irish commitment to continue beyond this year. The indication was that it would be about a maximum of another year when the year under the UN mandate has expired. We are doing a very good job there and I raise this concern and seek an update on security because of the possibility of short-term developments putting our Irish troops at greater risk. I would like the matter clarified.

This was the biggest mission by the EUFOR under the operational command of Lieutenant-General Nash and it was a success. There were major problems to begin with, such as the logistics of setting up camp in an area 2,000 miles from the sea, and this was a major undertaking. It was discharged very well. The UN base was under construction when I visited the area and I am sure progress has been made on this. The fact that Lieutenant-General Nash oversaw this mission from its inception through to its conclusion and the fact that it has been successful makes me very proud as an Irish person and a Member of this House.

I understand that hospital care is provided by Italians in Chad. Will this continue? Will there be a change in the medical personnel we will deal with? The rainy season will begin in three months' time and this has the effect of slowing everything down. The Labour Party gives full support to this motion.

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