Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

The internal political situation in Iran remains of serious concern. While the public demonstrations arising from last June's disputed presidential election may have abated somewhat, the overall human rights situation has deteriorated considerably in Iran since then. The response of the Iranian authorities to the largely peaceful protests, the most recent of which took place on 18 September, has been harsh and repressive, with many hundreds arrested and detained. There are disturbing reports of maltreatment of prisoners and on the conditions of their detention. There have been allegations of torture, rape and even death in custody. We have witnessed what can only be described as mass show trials of opposition political activists and others who participated in peaceful demonstrations against the election result.

Ireland and the European Union continue to make known to the Iranian authorities our serious concerns at these developments as we have done since the start of the crisis. Any failure on Iran's part to ensure observance of international legal standards in conducting the trial of those now charged will have serious consequences and will draw an appropriate response from the European Union. We also continue close contact with and support for our French and United Kingdom colleagues in their ongoing diplomatic efforts to secure the freedom of the French national, Clothilde Reiss, and to ensure the proper and lawful treatment of locally-employed embassy staff. This has been a particular issue for the United Kingdom. One must keep human rights in Iran at the forefront of our relations with that country in light of the current difficult internal political situation.

On the second issue of Iran's nuclear programme, attention is currently focused on the proposals submitted by the Iranian Foreign Minister to representatives of the E3+3 group, that is, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, China and Russia on 9 September. Having read through it, I must state that it is a slim document. These proposals outline a general commitment on Iran's part to engage in comprehensive, all-encompassing negotiations but do not refer directly to its nuclear programme and contain no real indication from the Iranian Government that it is willing to suspend any ongoing enrichment activities. The E3+3 group has agreed, however, to meet Iran representatives to discuss these proposals. A meeting between Javier Solana and the Iranian chief negotiator, Saeed Jalili, is scheduled for 1 October. In the meantime, Iran and its nuclear ambitions are likely to be a major topic of discussion at the UN General Assembly session this week and at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh.

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