Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I move:

That Dáil Éireann, seriously concerned by the impact of Cyclone Nargis which struck Burma/Myanmar on 2 and 3 May, causing enormous destruction, injuries and loss of life in Burma/Myanmar:

expresses its deepest sympathy for the people of Burma/Myanmar;

condemns the restrictions on humanitarian access which undermines the principles of humanitarian response, so essential to save lives and livelihoods;

calls on the Government of Burma/Myanmar, as a matter of urgency, to allow full and free access to the affected area for humanitarian supplies and organisations experienced in emergency operations;

welcomes the commitment by the Irish Government to provide €1 million as a first contribution, in response to this disaster, and the deployment of humanitarian supplies from its stockpiles in Brindisi, Italy, through the United Nations;

commends the efforts being made by United Nations agencies, the Red Cross and non-governmental organisations to obtain access to those most in need and in peril from the effects of Hurricane Nargis; and

deplores the decision of the Burmese Government to proceed in most of its territory with the already fundamentally flawed referendum on a new constitution on 10 May, despite the concerns of the international community and in disregard of the humanitarian crisis caused by Cyclone Nargis.

Cyclone Nargis struck Burma on 2 and 3 May 2008 with winds of up to 200 km/h, sweeping through the delta region and the country's main city and former capital, Yangon. Damage from the cyclone was most severe in the delta region, where the effects of extreme winds were compounded by a sizeable storm surge that destroyed an estimated 95% of housing. Yangon sustained a direct hit, which knocked down power and communications lines and inflicted major damage to buildings. Even now, more than ten days after the storm, people remain largely without electricity, piped water and communications. Many roads into and out of the city, as well as vital roads into the delta region, are still blocked by flooding or debris. For much of the delta region, the most significant transportation is normally by waterway, and water transport infrastructure has been severely damaged.

The toll of people killed, missing or affected remains difficult to assess, with the numbers continuing to increase daily. The UN estimates that up to 100,000 are feared dead and more than 1.5 million are in need of assistance. To make matters worse, more strong rains are forecast for next week. About 24 million people — roughly 50% of the population — live in the cyclone-affected areas. Considering the season, a major crop loss is not envisaged but huge swathes of fertile agricultural land were inundated with salty water which will require significant time to bring back to normal.

There are enormous challenges involved in mounting a logistics operation of the scale required to deliver sufficient levels of assistance to affected communities. However, the major challenge to an effective response to this crisis is man made. The challenge is the reluctance of the Government of Burma to accept international humanitarian assistance. In the days after the cyclone, the Government refused to issue visas for international humanitarian workers and refused to allow humanitarian supplies to enter the country.

Almost two weeks after the cyclone, there is a very real risk of serious health problems among vulnerable communities, particularly as a result of Burmese Government-imposed delays in the provision of necessary aid. It is feared that malaria transmission will significantly increase and epidemics will occur in many areas. In addition, lack of access to safe drinking water and the near-total absence of sanitation in affected areas will increase the risk of diarrhoeal diseases, including cholera. The denial and impediment of access has compounded what was already a very severe natural disaster.

It was more than one week after the crisis before supplies seemed finally to be getting through, although the quantity is still nowhere near enough to meet the needs of the affected population. Even when supplies have arrived in the country, the Burmese Government has been curtailing their distribution, often insisting on taking control. This is despite the reality that, access permitted, the international humanitarian community has greater capacity and the necessary experience to do so effectively. The Government in Burma has also continued to enforce its very restrictive visa policy. Some aid workers who have managed to obtain visas have been turned back at the airport. Visas that have been issued have, in some instances, been for very short periods only, effectively rendering them useless. Delivery of humanitarian aid in such a crisis is a complex task and without experienced international staff, the delivery will not be as effective.

On Tuesday, the EU Presidency convened a special emergency meeting of the General Affairs Council to underline the severity of this crisis. It is noteworthy that the 11 September terrorist attack and the Asian tsunami were the last occasions that gave rise to the convening of such an extraordinary Council meeting. In its conclusions, the Council considered that without the co-operation of the authorities in Burma, an even greater tragedy is threatened. It fully shared the deep concern recently expressed by the UN Secretary General and expressed its support for any initiative, including in the UN bodies, that would help to meet the humanitarian needs of the Burmese people. It stressed its strong support for the efforts of the UN, the Red Cross-Red Crescent movement and NGOs to bring aid to the people of Burma and underlined the point that the effective delivery of aid must be monitored by expert humanitarian staff. While welcoming recent limited improvements on the ground, the Council called on the authorities in Burma to offer free and unfettered access to international humanitarian experts, including the expeditious delivery of visa and travel permits.

The Council also expressed support for the visit to the region by the European Commissioner for development and humanitarian aid, Louis Michel, in his mission to seek progress from the competent Burmese authorities in ensuring access by humanitarian aid workers to the country and to the affected areas.

Ireland has been to the fore in calling for full and free access to the affected areas for relief supplies. Workers and Irish embassies in neighbouring countries have made representations seeking their assistance in getting access for the international relief effort. Ireland will continue to use its diplomatic influence to improve the access for both humanitarian supplies and workers.

Some of our European partners have raised the possibility of invoking the "responsibility to protect" initiative, agreed at the UN World Summit in 2005 as a means of intervening directly even without the consent of the Burmese Government.

We would support any initiative that would bring aid more effectively to those in need, but at this stage it appears very unlikely that the necessary agreement could be found within the Security Council to act in this manner. Frustrating as it is, there may be no practical alternative to continuing to press the Burmese Government to allow in both the necessary supplies and the necessary international expertise. The obstruction of the international aid effort by the Government of Burma is not acceptable. I call on it immediately to lift all obstacles to the delivery of urgent, life-saving assistance. Every day and every hour is critical. Thousands of lives can still be saved.

The Irish Government's response has been rapid and effective. The Government immediately made an initial pledge of €1 million for emergency relief. This will be channelled through established partners in emergency response, such as NGOs, UN agencies and the Red Cross. Clearly, we are ready to respond further. In addition to this direct support to the emergency response, Ireland is also providing support through its substantial annual contributions to two key international funds designed specifically to provide immediate finance in response to sudden on-set emergencies of this kind, namely, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, CERF, and the Red Cross-managed Disaster Relief Emergency Fund, DREF. Both funds, which were established to make financial aid available to their respective organisations to facilitate rapid response to humanitarian emergencies, have already released significant amounts of money for this crisis. This year, Ireland is the sixth largest contributor to the UN's CERF, with a contribution of €22.6 million, and the second largest contributor to the DREF of the Red Cross, with a contribution of €2 million.

On Saturday, 10 May, we dispatched an airlift of essential humanitarian supplies from our stockpiles at the UN's humanitarian response base in Brindisi, Italy. The airlift, which was co-ordinated by the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs and shared with Norway, landed in Yangon on Sunday, 11 May. On board were large quantities of essential non-food supplies, such as plastic sheeting for temporary shelter, blankets, kitchen sets and mosquito nets, as well as tents, water tanks and water purification equipment provided by Norway. The supplies have been cleared and are to be distributed to affected communities on the ground. In addition, Irish supplies formed part of an earlier airlift last week shared with the Italian Government, which also pre-positions supplies in Brindisi. We are ready to make further shipments of our supplies if requested and access arrangements permit.

I have also asked that the rapid response corps be put on stand-by for early deployment. The corps is a roster of skilled and experienced volunteers who make themselves available to deploy at short notice to humanitarian emergencies. If requested, members of the corps will be deployed to work with our partners, the UN Refugee Agency, the World Food Programme and the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs. My officials remain in ongoing contact with our partners who have a presence on the ground in Burma and with those who are co-ordinating the response from Bangkok to obtain regularly updated information on the needs of affected communities.

The further tragedy of Cyclone Nargis is that it is a natural catastrophe piled upon the man-made catastrophe that has already engulfed the people of Burma, created by the ruling military regime. A country that was once the rice bowl of Asia has over many years been reduced to abject and desperate poverty in many of its regions by mismanagement, corruption and military offensives to root out ethnic and other political dissent. A country rich in natural resources is now one of the ten poorest countries in the world — its wealth in precious metals, stones, minerals and hardwoods plundered by the military. There is massive diversion of state resources towards maintaining the military elite, with 40% of the national budget spent on defence, while its health care system is ranked by the WHO as 190th out of 191 surveyed nations.

Chronic levels of inflation — notably a fivefold increase in fuel prices last August — sparked protests which were brutally put down by the military on 25 September.

The people of Burma have long made clear their demands for democracy, freedom, justice and economic security but these aspirations have been met by censorship, rejection, intimidation and brute force. The overwhelming victory of the democratic opposition party, the NLD, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, in the 1990 elections was overturned by the military regime and opposition leaders. Anyone seen to be critical of the regime was imprisoned or otherwise silenced.

On 9 February 2008, the Burmese Government announced that it would hold a referendum on a new constitution in May, to be followed by multi-party democratic elections in 2010. The referendum is the fourth step in the regime's deeply flawed seven step road map to democracy. The previous step, drafting the new constitution, was a 14 year process, from which relevant political stakeholders, including the democratic opposition and representatives of ethnic minorities were excluded.

No real progress has been made in seeking to allay any of the international community's concerns that the road map process is a political tool to guarantee a permanent role for the military in the future governance of Burma. The decision of the Burmese Government to effectively ignore this major humanitarian disaster and to proceed in most of its territory with this already fundamentally-flawed referendum can only be deplored. Reports indicate that the regime has sought to push through the new constitution with violence, intimidation and vote-rigging. This referendum cannot be regarded as reflecting the real wishes of the people of Burma. It has done nothing to assist the long-term stability and democratic development of that country. Rather, by prioritising the referendum over aid distribution, the regime has put at risk hundreds of thousands of lives. Ultimately, the only sustainable solution to the political situation in Burma is credible dialogue on democratic reform with the opposition and the ethnic groups.

The Government continues to support the role of the UN Secretary General and that of his special envoy, Dr. Gambari, who was appointed after the crisis of last autumn. Dr. Gambari's good offices mission offers the best path to encourage the ending of the political crisis and achieving national reconciliation. So far, the Burmese authorities have not engaged seriously with the UN.

It is vital that they do so. Burma's neighbours, including ASEAN members and China, have a key role to play in encouraging the Burmese regime towards genuine dialogue and reform. Bilaterally, and through the EU, we continue to urge their proactive engagement in pressing the Burmese regime towards national reconciliation, dialogue and democracy. While some of Burma's neighbours did exert a more active influence than heretofore, particularly last autumn, this has not so far been as sustained or effective as it needs to be. Both Dr. Gambari and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon have stressed the importance of tangible action by the Burmese regime, and have rightly made clear that the patience of the international community is running out. The Security Council should be engaged in efforts to find sustainable solutions to both the immediate and longer-term problems facing the country.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to share time with Deputy Breen. I welcome the Minister to the House and congratulate him on his appointment to the Department of Foreign Affairs, along with the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Power. If I may be so bold, I will give him two pieces of advice. His predecessor, Deputy Dermot Ahern, was in charge of a policy to consider establishing links with Fianna Fáil in Northern Ireland. I raised this issue with the previous Minister and I ask the current Minister to consider this carefully. I have grave concerns about a policy that may lead to Unionists sitting on one side of the table alongside Fianna Fáil Ministers and across from Fianna Fáil Ministers. That is not what the people of Ireland voted for and I ask the Minister to consult with his new party leader and Taoiseach on this policy. One can never put a limit on the boundaries of political parties but this matter is important.

I am delighted to speak on the situation in Burma. We have condemned the regime in Burma in this House over the past few months but it has also come up occasionally over the past decades. I want to sympathise with the Burmese people and examine how we can assist them. The contrast is amazing between the swift and efficient reaction of the military in putting down the protest of the monks. The military seemed to be all-powerful and seemed to carry much authority. In the past few weeks, in contrast, they have been conspicuous by their absence and have an inability, whether by design or otherwise, to assist the people in their country. While one would not advocate a military regime in charge of any group, the one redeeming feature would be that it would be efficient in times of crisis and have contingency plans. This does not seem to be the case and I hope this gels the people of Burma to try to get rid of this regime. That will not happen unless neighbouring regimes such as China stand back rather than influencing the area.

The Burmese authorities had 48 hours notice of this cyclone. They issued some warnings but made no plans for evacuation. They received warnings from the meteorological service in India but nothing was put in place to assist vulnerable people. The Minister outlined how poor the country is, with 30% of its 50 million people below the poverty rate. Infant mortality is 76 per 1,000 of live births and the world food programme estimates that one third of children under five are malnourished and 57% of children leave primary school. These statistics indicate how poor the country is under the authority of the junta. Notwithstanding this, it is one of the countries that has received the least aid, something like €2 per head. This is because countries will not subscribe to a regime so clearly at odds with the population it represents.

The question is how to get aid to the country. The military junta has been in place since the 1960s. Not having access to opinion polls like we do, it called an election in 1990 expecting to come out on top. It was severely crushed but, notwithstanding that, it parked the result of the election and Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the political party that won most seats, has been under house arrest since then. The Minister outlined the steps in progress towards democracy and how it has taken 14 years to frame the constitution. A constitutional referendum was called for 10 May and, despite international calls to defer it, it took place in the unaffected regions and will take place in the affected regions on 24 May. I call on the authorities to defer it. The constitutional referendum is a sham. The draft document was published one month before the referendum and was not translated into any of the 140 ethnic languages that represent 40% of the population of Burma. Some 40% of the population did not have access to it. The constitution reserves 25% of the seats in parliament for army officers, effectively giving a veto over constitutional change, and reserves the right of the military to intervene at any time. It is nothing but a cover up for the junta. If people had free will they would vote against it but will probably vote for it because they are intimidated by the military at polling booths.

Some countries such as China, Thailand and India are getting aid in but there may be international reservations about the motivation of Thailand and India because these countries have an interest in oil and gas resources in Burma. We must look at how we can get aid in; the USA has been turned down. I read last night that coincidentally Congress had bestowed an honour on Aung San Suu Kyi in the week of the cyclone and has also passed a motion condemning the regime. We must ask ourselves if, in putting down a motion condemning the regime, we are actually prohibiting an opportunity of getting aid in. My grandmother used to say that a thimble of honey was worth a bucket of vinegar. Often, we must make our views on democracy subservient to pragmatism and try to assist people. It is the people we are trying to assist in this whole catastrophe.

We often ask ourselves, in the context of Burma and other places, why a regime does this to its people. I am reminded of a refrain from "Fiddler on the Roof". We must recognise that there are two sides to every story. We in the west have down through the centuries plundered and exploited the resources of many of these countries which view us with a certain level of suspicion. I am aware that India annexed Burma for some time. I am sure Members are familiar with the British East India Tea Company that operated in Burma some centuries ago. The Burmese people are suspicious of the western world and believe we are out to exploit their resources.

The only mechanism through which we will be able to get aid in to Burma or other places where natural disasters occur is through the auspices of the non-governmental organisations, in particular the United Nations. We must anticipate these disasters and put in place contingency plans to which all countries must sign-up. We must ensure there is in place a mechanism through which we can get aid to those who need it.

It is horrific to think that in the region of 100,000 or 200,000 people have died because of the cyclone. Oxfam estimates that in the region of 1.5 million people could die from related illnesses. Unnecessary action by the junta is prohibiting aid, which could assist people, from getting in. We have all read the harrowing stories of fathers watching their children fall off trees because they could not hold on any longer. I believe Ireland can take a lead role in this area. We must ensure a contingency plan is put in place by the UN with the agreement of all countries. Let us use the diplomatic approach and get agreement on how aid can be delivered to the area. It is horrific to think that aid stacked up in India, Italy and Thailand cannot be delivered to the people.

With regard to the Irish Government's response, I welcome the €1 million pledged by the Government and the Minister's reference to the availability of the rapid response corps. The UN must consider the involvement of the rapid response corps in this regard. The situation is similar to the deployment by the EU of battlegroups. We can expand the concept here at home. There is a great sense of volunteerism in Ireland and people would be willing to sign-up to this. It would be great if we could send 50 health technicians with water tablets to Burma.

The Fine Gael Party wholeheartedly supports the motion and sends it sympathy to the Burmese people. We condemn the current regime and plead with it to look at this crisis in a humanitarian way and to allow aid in to its citizens who are dying.

Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I congratulate the Minister on his appointment as Minister for Foreign Affairs.

It is obvious the crisis in Burma is escalating by the minute. Today we hear the Burmese authorities have isolated the cyclone disaster zone from the rest of the world. They have expelled foreign aid workers and put in place checkpoints along the roads of the Irrawaddy Delta.

When Cyclone Nargis, which was packing 190 km per hour, hit Burma it was a catastrophic blow for a country already the poorest nation in South East Asia. This disaster is worse than the 2005 tsunami and the full extent of it is hard to quantify. The military junta Government has admitted that the death toll has now reached 34,723, with a further 41,000 people missing. The Red Cross has reported today that the death toll has reached 128,000 with the UN reporting that 2 million people have been seriously affected.

The aid effort is being hampered by the failure of the Burmese Government to allow the international community to respond.

Only a trickle of international aid is reaching the 2 million people made homeless and only 35 flights have been allowed to land in Rangoon, one tenth of what is required. The logistics of getting aid to those most in need is not helped by the lack of experienced aid relief workers on the ground and is compounded by the country's poor infrastructure. Much of the worst affected area along the Irrawaddy Delta is flooded, bridges have collapsed and roads have been washed away.

Time is running out if we are to stop a greater disaster from happening, namely, the spread of diarrhoea and cholera as there is no clean drinking water or sanitation. More bad weather is on the way. The affected area of the Irrawaddy Delta is the rice bowl of Burma, the largest per capita consumers of rice in the world. This will have enormous impact on the supply of rice in Burma for the coming year.

Thanks to the international media — we must praise their reporting of this disaster — many of whom have had to run the gauntlet of the military, the true extent of this disaster is becoming clear. Human rights activists in Bogalay claim the Government has given no effective help, that it was busy clearing streets where the ruling elite lived, leaving the rest of the people to fend for themselves. They also claim that regional commanders have been putting their names on the side of aid shipments from other countries, saying it is a gift for them and distributing it in their region. This means the aid is not going to the areas where it is most needed.

We have all heard the grief stricken stories of survivors tinged with desperation as they struggle to avoid death themselves, for example, Ti Lin a farmer in the Bo Hin Hamlet, who has been looking for his wife and three daughters for six days or his neighbour San Po Thin who told of waking up to find his wife and two daughters washed away during the storm. An emergency meeting of EU development Ministers has agreed to support any initiative including in the UN bodies which would help to meet the humanitarian needs of the Burmese people. The EU Aid Commissioner, Mr. Louis Michel, landed in Yangon on Wednesday where he will be having discussions with officials for two days. He is also hoping to meeting with humanitarian aid officials in the worst affected area. The Thai Prime Minister met with the Burmese Prime Minister, Thein Sein, yesterday who ruled out any significant foreign presence on the ground.

As Deputy Timmins stated, it is extraordinary that in spite of the extent of the devastation in the aftermath of this cyclone Saturday's referendum on a new constitution proceeded. I understand voting in affected areas has been postponed until 24 May. The Burmese Government should be distributing aid and issuing visas to international aid relief workers to areas badly affected by the cyclone.

Some western Governments are of the opinion that aid should be distributed irrespective of the Burmese Government's views. Others are of the opinion that western aid should be redirected through regimes which are considered friendly to Burma. The UN has promised that an envoy will be dispatched to Burma. As Deputy Timmins correctly stated, the UN has an important role to play in light of today's news that the Burmese Government is forcing aid workers to leave the country.

I tabled a parliamentary question to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Martin, on Tuesday. I welcome his pledge of up €1 million for emergency relief. I would like to see an even greater pledge from the Irish Government. Also, we must ensure the aid is getting to those who are in need. This is a humanitarian crisis and the Burmese Government must put aside its suspicions and allow the international community to respond. The humanitarian crisis is like none other before and we are being frustrated in our efforts to assist those who need our help. I appeal to the Minister to do everything in his power to support the UN in its efforts to ensure its envoy is allowed access to Burma.

I sympathise with the people of Burma in this terrible crisis.

Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I welcome the opportunity to say a few words on the crisis in Burma. I join with others in offering my sympathy to the Burmese people. It is, however, much more important we offer them our solidarity.

I welcome the Minister and wish him well in his new portfolio. I also congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Power, on his appointment. It is important to point out that the Minister has started well in delivering a good speech on Burma. His speech has the merit of considerable directness and I congratulate him on it — may it continue.

I have a couple of fundamental proposals to make as we move on. Also, I would like to pick up on some of the points made. In the most recent discursions on United Nations reform, in which the Minister's predecessor participated as a special representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations, the concept of humanitarian intervention was brought to the fore. It is referred to in the Minister's speech as humanitarian protection. This is crucial for us in the Dáil and challenges those of us who are spokespersons for foreign affairs. As the Labour Party spokesperson for foreign affairs, I title our policy "towards an ethical foreign policy" and this is important.

With regard to where the concept of humanitarian protection comes from, some of the most original work at the level of the United Nations came from Dr. Sahnoun, the representative of the United Nations in Somalia during the now neglected tragedy there. Dr. Sahnoun addressed a contradiction in the United Nations charter. Countries sign up to the charter in an act as a sovereign country. Therefore, the moral dilemma one faces is whether such sovereignty can be used as an obstacle to the defence of human rights.

One could take the discussion which took place in Vienna a number of years ago on whether human rights can be made universal. A great deal of work must be done on whether this should be on the basis of rationality, revelation, conflicts or sources of origin between the western world and Islam. More immediately, Dr. Sahnoun continued his work and raised the question as to whether sovereignty can ever be used to deprive people of the right to life and protection. Those of us who call our neutrality "positive neutrality" must accept that humanitarian protection overrides any extreme version of sovereignty. This is the position I advise for my party and is the position contained in our documents.

I am delighted the Minister raised this issue in his speech. It is something for which there is a legacy that moves on from Rwanda, goes through Darfur and is now present with regard to Burma. What were the alternatives? At the time of the Irish Presidency, another predecessor of the Minister in preparing for the ASEAN conference used the concept of constructive dialogue. The suggestion was that through constructive dialogue the Burmese military junta which represses its people could be turned around. The argument was that if they were at the table they would listen to the arguments and their neighbours in ASEAN would be able to influence them.

At the time, I stated this policy was wrong. I did not believe the Burmese regime would shift and indeed it did not. The conditions in which Aung San Suu Kyi is held and the democratic choice of the Burmese people have not fundamentally changed. We now have the obscenity, to which the Minister and Deputy Timmins rightly refer, of a constitution, which is far from it, being imposed on the Burmese people even at the worst time of tragic loss of life and great threats.

One is left to consider what can be done. Two matters are important in the analysis. One is to construct a strategy which will continue past this crisis and the other is to handle the immediate crisis. With regard to the latter, we must remember a second cyclone is threatened which may happen within 24 hours. Therefore, while people refer to loss of life through disease and contaminated water, the absence of shelter, malnutrition, various forms of hypothermia, the real danger exists of a second cyclone visiting the region.

Where is there a glimmer of hope in the short term? It is probably through the initiatives of the Thai Prime Minister. The latest statements from the Burmese regime were that it would accept personnel as well as aid from neighbours such as India, Bangladesh and Thailand. The reality for those of us who may have briefly visited the region in the past is that the main bridge which connects Burma to Thailand is entirely silent. Aid could roll over that bridge at any time. The action of the Burmese generals in not allowing aid to move from Thailand is literally a savage act visiting death on their own people. It should never be forgotten.

With regard to humanitarian protection, the need for reform of the UN is pointed out in the absolutely indefensible actions of China, with which I sympathised earlier in the week on its own disaster which also threatens to get worse. Its use of the veto to stop a significant resolution being taken by the Security Council on humanitarian protection is indefensible. We are left in an incredible position which is unacceptable to the international community whereby even the number of dead, threatened and at risk cannot be calculated. A wide division exists between the number of dead acknowledged by the regime and figures which pass 120,000 or 127, 000 from respectable bodies such as the Red Cross.

The way in which issues such as this are handled is important. Statements made by the United States may not have been couched in the most appropriate language but any person who is regularly critical of aspects of the United States foreign policy must acknowledge they are the most important people with regard to air delivery of disaster relief. The suggestion that a ten person US disaster management team has not been allowed entry to Burma is outrageous. They are crucial with regard to logistics and the practical delivery of aid to remote areas.

With regard to the world food programme, disturbing reports are flowing from ground level staff on the misappropriation of commodities such as high-energy biscuits. One set of news reports suggested the army took prime emergency food and replaced it with other food.

It is important we have an immediate response. I accept the Government's commitment of €1 million which it immediately stated was a first contribution. I welcome this and it is appropriate. With regard to where our major contributions are made which was referred to in the Minister's speech to the multilateral agencies, I am not obsessed with the detail of where Irish aid goes. I am totally in favour of the programme and I would like to make a suggestion. A debate on project expenditure led by NGOs versus State expenditure will bring us nowhere. A large resource of people could be assisted by giving short-term fellowships from Irish Aid to economics and engineering departments and particularly to postgraduate development studies and human rights departments. I confess my interest as I am an adjunct professor at the Irish Centre for Human Rights at NUI Galway.

Short-term fellowships do not constitute an increase of the public service so they are not a continuing cost. It would provide practical experience in different cultures of issues such as operating food response and emergency, food security, recoveries of rural communities, for example after the tsunami, housing, governance at local level, political participation, enhancing civil society and post-disaster recovery. One could put people there for a year or two, thereby providing a combination of the best theoretical and academic work, for which others have responsibility, with practical experience. It would sit well with the welcome response unit on disaster relief. I make these suggestions in an attempt to be positive about how we can proceed.

Where do we stand on moral suasion, which was suggested by way of, for example, the thimble full of honey and the bucket of vinegar? I believe we are past that point. It is very significant that Ireland's international response is in partnership with Norway, which spends approximately 1.1% of its GDP on overseas development aid and is in the top three in the world. Norway has published an interesting White Paper on development, which is as near as we have been to a rights-based approach to development. Norway and Ireland are uniquely positioned to take initiatives in making a new demand relating to humanitarian protection.

Two issues arise in this regard. Is there a human right to development, which is general? Is it possible to combine civil and political rights with economic, social and cultural rights? That debate will run on, but if the concept of the global community is about the right to live without threat, be that physical or related to food security, it can be grafted easily on to social and economic and cultural rights as the work of Professor Amartya Sen and others show, as well as the right to participate in one's world without shame, which is emerging from studies in India and Bangladesh. Norway and Ireland could and should take an initiative. Parties in different parts of the world favour the strong unmitigated version of sovereignty and that debate must be pushed on. I have said repeatedly that it is an abuse of sovereignty to put up a shield and prevent rights from being vindicated.

The same is also true in Zimbabwe and it is particularly true in Burma. An immediate multi-skilled demand, probably spearheaded by Burma's neighbours, is needed before the weekend. A medium-term strategy is needed that considers a way of enhancing our institutional capacity and, more important, at international diplomatic level we need perhaps to take a new departure in making sure that we can respond not only to the likes of the Burmese tragedy but to any other equivalent scenario that might emerge.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank Deputies Timmins, Breen and Higgins for their contributions. I also thank them for their agreement on the fundamentals regarding the Burmese situation and the devastating impact of the cyclone on the country and its people. The debate has been constructive and informative. I again pass on the condolences of the Government, the Oireachtas and our people to the people of Burma-Myanmar, especially the families of the many thousands who died in the wake of the cyclone. We offer our solidarity and our continued assistance to the more than 1.5 million Burmese people who have been affected by the tragedy, as Deputy Higgins articulated.

The enormous scale and destruction of the crisis has not been fully defined and detailed needs assessments have been hampered by infrastructural damage caused by the cyclone. It is agreed the relief effort has been hindered by man-made obstacles, specifically obstacles to access imposed by the Burmese Government. While improvements have been made on the ground in recent days, further delays in the provision of humanitarian relief cannot be countenanced and no further time can or should be lost in meeting the enormous needs for food, drinking water, shelter, sanitation and medicines of the affected communities. Together with our EU colleagues, we call again on the authorities in Burma to take urgent action to facilitate the flow of aid to its people. They are in desperate need and must benefit in full from the relief offered by the international community. We are encouraging neighbouring countries to use their influence to ease the restrictions the Burmese Government has placed on the flow of international aid. We reiterate the recent call by the UN Secretary General for the Burmese authorities to offer free and unfettered access to international humanitarian experts, including the expeditious delivery of visa and travel permits.

While the Government made an initial €1 million pledge, we contributed generously per capita to more structured provisions put in place by the UN central emergency response fund and the Red Cross managed disaster relief emergency fund and this is the best benchmark to measure our overall response to such emergencies. It is a more structured approach, which emerged following the tsunami a number of years ago in order that the world community would be in a better position to respond more quickly in a co-ordinated and effective way which would have the greatest impact.

I will take on board the comments of the Deputies and the issues raised, in particular, by Deputy Higgins, such as the moral dilemma. I accept his well argued position that sovereignty in its extreme form cannot be used as a basis for depriving people fundamental human rights and entitlements such as access to aid and the fundamentals of life. We are witnessing a fundamental abuse in Burma, which cannot be condoned or countenanced in any respect. I will take on board his suggestions regarding fellowships and so on. We are open to such ideas to advance the overall pool of people engaged in these issues as the best way of advancing knowledge and learning expertise that can be subsequently used for the benefit of mankind.

I appreciate the constructive engagement of my colleagues in the Oireachtas on this issue. I assure the House the people of Burma have our full support and encouragement and we will continue to work with our partners in the humanitarian community, in particular the UN, NGOs and the Red Cross, which are operating in Burma in immensely difficult and trying circumstances. They deserve great credit and praise for their work and they will continue to have our full support and encouragement in their efforts to save lives and rebuild the livelihoods of the affected people of Burma-Myanmar.