Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. No one underestimates the challenges facing Libya today. It has suffered four decades of misrule by one man and the country must be rebuilt virtually from scratch. This is a very difficult task in this modern time. It is vital that respect for and promotion of human rights remain central to the mission of the current interim government and the administration which will be elected next month to oversee the drawing up of a new constitution. The Libyan people who so bravely defied Gadaffi and brought his dictatorship to an end expect no less.

The Government is committed to strengthening the already good relations which exist between Ireland and Libya. We are fortunate that a number of members of the interim government are dual citizens who came to Ireland to escape Gadaffi's repression in the first instance. I assure the Deputy the Government is working hard to strengthen our ties in all areas and to offer whatever practical assistance we can. While there are self-evidently limits to what we can do, I assure the Deputy that anything that can be done is being contemplated and will be implemented if that is the request of the Libyan people.

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