Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

A report on 3 February by the respected non-governmental organisation, Human Rights Watch, stated that Libya has, since the end of January, blocked access from that country to certain websites based in other countries, including opposition Libyan websites and YouTube. This action, which was at first represented as a technical fault, is being interpreted as an attempt to prevent dissemination in Libya of opposition material or postings critical of the Libyan authorities.

Blocking access to websites is a reflex response of many regimes around the world to criticism and is usually a corollary to suppression of opinion at home. Libya has always been a tightly controlled society and although the country has to a slight extent opened up in recent years, this move represents a retrograde and disappointing development. The opening up to freedom of expression and the willingness to accept criticism is a central value of democracy and good governance, which Ireland and our European Union partners try to encourage in all states with which we have dealings. It is also enshrined in international instruments to which Libya is a party, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and People's Rights. Libya should respect these international obligations.

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