Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 104: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs about the situation in Nepal. [1866/09]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The peace process in Nepal has continued to progress since the elections of April 2008 and the establishment of a federal democratic republic to replace the monarchy. I welcome the recent agreement reached by the political parties on arrangements for the drafting of a new constitution. Likewise, the recent efforts by the Nepalese Prime Minister to ensure the return of property seized during the civil war and to end the activities of paramilitary groups represent an important and welcome development.

However, long-term stability is far from being achieved in Nepal. Public discontent is mounting and the rule of law remains weak. Violent clashes have recently taken place between the Maoist Young Communist League and rival members of the Unified Marxist-Leninist, UML, youth force, which are both associated with government coalition parties.

Journalists critical of Maoist conduct have also been threatened with, and subjected to, violence from Maoist trade unionists. It remains imperative that all sides continue to respect pluralism and the rule of law, and work towards securing the political consensus needed to complete the peace process.

A central element of the peace process which remains incomplete is the integration of Maoist army personnel into the Nepalese army. I welcome the first meeting of the special committee tasked to oversee this which was held on 16 January. However, the reports of recruitment being undertaken by the Nepalese army, which is in contravention of the 2006 ceasefire agreement, are of concern. It is vital that all sides comply with agreed commitments on this issue and work towards a speedy resolution of it.

Ireland is accredited diplomatically to Nepal through our ambassador in New Delhi. Our embassy there monitors developments in Nepal closely and remains in regular contact with parties there, including the Nepalese Government. Ireland's ambassador-designate to Nepal will travel shortly to Kathmandu to present credentials and he will take this opportunity to engage in political consultations with the Government and other parties and interests and to convey our views and concerns while he is there. The EU is also actively engaged in Nepal and deployed an election observation mission to monitor the elections in April 2008, to which Ireland contributed. Likewise, the UN Mission in Nepal, UNMIN, plays a vital role in facilitating the peace process. Ireland remains fully supportive of its work.

In 2008, Irish Aid provided funding of over €1.1 million to civil society organisations for development activities in Nepal. Ireland also responded to the serious flooding in Nepal through a contribution of €89,000 to Plan Ireland for immediate relief to displaced families. In addition, €15,000 was provided towards the work of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in support of the Nepali peace process.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The initial paragraph of the Minister's response paints a picture of hope, but there is no political stability in Nepal. There is no power in Kathmandu for 16 hours a day, and no water. The population has just emerged from a two-week garbage strike and the country is in chaos, with problems of child trafficking, child slavery and refugees. Nepal is very low down on the scale and Sri Lanka is not too far from it in that regard. Unfortunately, we will not reach questions regarding the situation there. I ask the Minister to instruct the new ambassador designate to New Delhi to ask the Indian Government to use its influence on the area to try to bring some stability to Nepal.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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While I fully accept the Deputy's points, some progress has been made politically. The constituent assembly has chosen a President and Prime Minister and formed a coalition Government. It now has to work on drawing up a permanent constitution for Nepal. We will work and communicate the Oireachtas's views to the Indian Government on the role it can play. We will also work directly with the authorities in Nepal to see if we can be of further assistance in helping build up civil society and proper governance structures there.

Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Does the Minister consider that it would be useful, through the ambassador in New Delhi, to follow on the €1.1 million we spent through the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights by seeking opportunities there for assisting with the human rights mechanisms such as the Human Rights Commission, writing a constitution and bringing into existence institutions of civil society? Our assisting in that would be an opportunity for some once-off relationships with the Nepalese Government.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Yes. The EU plays a very significant role in Nepal. The EU engagement centres around three focal areas, education, stability and peace building. It has allocated €60 million to funding projects that address these issues. We have had some criticism of the EU today but it is equally important to point to where it plays a positive role. The statistics about the humanitarian situation there are extremely grave. Its child malnutrition rates are among the worst in the world. Approximately 8 million Nepalese continue to live at or below the poverty line. There was an appalling rise in food prices last year, which compounded that. Approximately 2.7 million depend on food assistance. There are very serious and severe issues and through Irish Aid we will do what we can with the authorities in New Delhi and elsewhere to try to make our contribution to alleviating some of the horrific poverty people endure there on a daily basis.