Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 5: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the human rights and other criteria taken into consideration by him and by his Department when his Department is consulted by other Departments in relation to the countries of destination of certain goods; and the mechanisms in place to confirm that these criteria are met in the first instance and to monitor them to ensure they remain satisfied. [25457/06]

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, which is the licensing authority for Ireland's export control system, consults the Department of Foreign Affairs on all military licence applications and on some applications relating to controlled dual use goods. Ireland's export control system is implemented in a manner that fully meets its obligations as an EU member state and a participant in other international export control fora. Authorisation is given to export licence applications following careful case-by-case examination of their consistency with our international obligations, including the application of arms embargoes and compliance with the EU code of conduct on arms exports. The code of conduct refers to eight criteria which each application must satisfy before it can be approved. The criteria include respect for human rights; the internal situation in the final destination country; the behaviour of the buyer country in the international community, particularly its attitude to terrorism, the nature of its alliances and its respect for international law; regional peace and security; and the risk of diversion under undesirable conditions. The relevant regional sections are involved in the consultation process in the Department. These sections monitor and analyse the evolving political situation of each proposed country of end-destination, as well as issues such internal conflict and respect for human rights, to allow the Department to provide comprehensive and up-to-date observations to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment on each specific case.

Officials from the Department attend the relevant EU working group meetings, including those of the conventional arms working group in Brussels, where EU officials exchange denial notifications and share information about their respective export control policies and regulations. The Department is also represented at regular meetings of the international export control regimes, including the Wassenaar arrangement, which deals with conventional weapons, the Australia group, concerned with chemical and biological exports, the missile technology control regime and the nuclear suppliers group. These meetings provide important opportunities for officials to exchange information with respect to particular end-destinations and end-users.

The Department is also consulted by the Department of Transport on applications involving the transit or overflight of civil aircraft carrying munitions of war or dangerous goods. In considering such applications, the Department of Foreign Affairs, as a matter of policy, applies criteria similar to those which relate to the export of weapons or dual use goods.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Is the Minister of State aware that Amnesty International outlined that a human rights-based approach entails more than a formal commitment to respect human rights norms and standards? It stated it requires the integration of those minimum standards into all planned policies, budgets and processes in an institution. Does the Minister of State agree that the decisions of the Department of Foreign Affairs do not meet those standards? Does he agree that the absence of a rigorous human rights-based approach to his responsibilities has been exposed by the passage of arms and a helicopter gunship through Shannon Airport to serial human rights abusers in Indonesia and Israel? I recently highlighted the shipments to Indonesia which were in breach of an arms embargo.

Last week, Shannon Airport was used to facilitate the sale of an Apache attack helicopter.

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Does the Deputy have a question?

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I am setting the context of my question. Does the Minister accept the Apache helicopter could have been used in the collective punishment — a crime against humanity — in Palestine in recent days? At least 49 Palestinians, including 11 children, have been killed by Israeli forces. Does the Minister of State agree with the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, that the bombardment of civilian infrastructure amounts to collective punishment, a crime against humanity? This would have been carried out by weapons such as an Apache helicopter.

Does the Minister of State agree that the kidnapping by Israel of 25 elected Palestinian representatives demonstrates Israel's lack of commitment to democratic principles? Will he clarify that, after consultation with the Department of Transport, as required by the 1973 order, the Department of Foreign Affairs approved the use of Shannon Airport for the transfer of military helicopters and other military apparatus to Israel? Does the Minister of State agree the role played by the State in the sale and transfer of arms to human rights abusers is unacceptable and must cease immediately? What steps will he take to ensure this stops?

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I have already answered questions on the Palestinian-Israeli situation. What relevance does it have to this question?

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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We are transporting with the US a military Apache helicopter through Shannon Airport.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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That is not true.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Yes, it is true.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I will outline the facts and want the Deputy to withdraw his statement.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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It is true. I will not withdraw my statement.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I am aware of allegations made by Amnesty International about aspects of arms exports from Ireland. I have discussed the situation with the organisation. The Government is committed to ensuring Ireland's export controls are as strong as possible. For that reason, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment commissioned an independent report into the export control system. Following on from the consultant's report, published in July 2004, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment plans to introduce new legislation to strengthen the export controls system further.

Deputy Ó Snodaigh's earlier assertion is false. No embargo was in place against Indonesia at the time the goods transited through Ireland. In this case, the views of the Department of Foreign Affairs were sought in accordance with standard procedures. Our advice to the Department of Transport was based on all relevant foreign policy considerations, including the fact that Indonesia has made significant strides towards democracy. It has also been the victim of several grievous terrorist attacks such as those in Bali. Deputy Ó Snodaigh may not remember that fact.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I do remember that. However, there was a UN and a US arms embargo against Indonesia.

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State to continue without interruption.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Several Irish citizens were seriously injured in Bali. The Deputy should remember that Indonesia is a country of 225 million people, the fourth most populated country in the world. It is the largest Muslim democracy in the world.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State is a joke.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy is making fictional allegations which he seems to be good at. He should withdraw them because they have no basis. His party's history probably contains items which may not have been disclosed to the proper authorities. There is no point in him making falsehoods in the House when they do not stand up in law or to scrutiny.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State is a disgrace.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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His allegations do not fit in with the facts presented by the rigid system operated between Departments to ensure only proper legitimate transiting of goods takes place.

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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We will move on to Question No. 6.

Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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What was Deputy Ó Snodaigh doing up on the roof?

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I am entitled to a supplementary. That is disgraceful. I am the only Member who was not entitled to a supplementary question.

Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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What was he doing up on the roof?

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Time has run out. Priority Questions have concluded.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I am entitled to ask a supplementary question like all other Members.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The problem is that the Deputy made the question irrelevant because I had already answered the questions he raised.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State denied the facts. In February last year, an arms embargo was in place against Indonesia.

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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We must move on.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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It was not lifted by the US until March this year.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will withdraw that statement. It is the third time he has attempted to make it in the House.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State is the one who is lying.

Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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It is not factual, fair or correct.

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State will proceed with Question No. 6.