Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)

There is a serious issue with which both Ministers of State will be familiar. It was an opinion advanced by Dr. Sahnoun, among others, that the previous Secretary General of the United Nations has stressed the importance of humanitarian protection. In both this case and in a case I will discuss presently related to Gaza the sovereignty argument is being used to defeat the humanitarian protection principle. The United Nations took a significant decision when it decided to invoke humanitarian protection as a principle of policy. The Sri Lankan Government has stated that the onus is on anyone interested in dealing with the issue, for which the Minister of State and I share a concern, to recognise in the first instance that it is for the Sri Lankans themselves to recognise vulnerability. If that is the case it means that humanitarian protection has gone out the window as a principle of the international community although it is a matter of fundamental importance for peace building in the world community.

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