Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

I met the Vice President of Colombia, Angelino Garzón, when he visited Ireland on 24 January. I conveyed the concerns of the Government of Ireland at reports of human rights abuses in Colombia. Vice President Garzón acknowledged these concerns and underlined the progress that had been made in recent years to improve the human rights situation in Colombia. During our meeting, Vice President Garzón and I discussed the possibilities for information-sharing experiences between Irish and Colombian NGOs and civil society organisations.

We also discussed the Colombian Government's plans for a national conference on human rights scheduled to take place in November-December 2012. Further information on the theme for, as well as the process of participating in, this important event has been sought from the Colombian embassy in London. It is intended that a series of regional roundtable dialogues in Colombia will precede the conference, the aim of which is to create a national framework for human rights.

Ireland actively supports the EU policy of engagement, dialogue and scrutiny as the best way to promote the advancement of human rights in Colombia. The EU recognises that Colombia remains a fragile state and that, despite the progress made, human rights abuses continue to occur. It is for this reason that Ireland attached such importance to the inclusion of a human rights clause in the EU free trade agreement with Colombia and Peru during its negotiation.

Ireland will continue to support the efforts of the Colombian Government to address human rights challenges via our embassy in Mexico city and with our partners in the European Union.

See this speech in context