Mary White (Fianna Fail)

I was very pleased to hear the Minister draw attention in his speech to the situation in Zimbabwe. I find the tacit support of the South African Government for President Mugabe hard to take given that the South African population was trampled and walked upon. The population in Zimbabwe is being trampled and walked upon, but the South African Government will not defend them.

In his speech, the Minister said that he joined his EU colleagues in holding the Zimbabwean Government responsible for the safety of the opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai. He stated:

On behalf of the Irish Government, I call for his immediate and unconditional release and that of his colleagues. Our concerns about his arrest, however, do not stop there. His arrest and the actions of the authorities raise fundamental questions about President Mugabe's respect for basic democratic norms, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law.