Ann Ormonde (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State and I congratulate him on his new appointment. As Government spokesperson on foreign affairs in this House, I look forward to working with him and doing what I can to help him when he is in this Chamber.

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. Cyclone Nargis, which occurred on 2 and 3 May, caused huge destruction, injuries and loss of life. It occurred under the dictatorship of the all-powerful Burmese military regime, and I understand from reports that the authorities there had 48 hours' notice of the cyclone, but had no contingency plans to help vulnerable people. This struck me as very serious.

I looked at the map to see the area destroyed, which is known as the delta area. The cyclone destroyed communication lines and inflicted damage on buildings. Roads and waterworks were destroyed, while there is no water or electricity. This occurred under the watch of the military regime. According to UN and Red Cross estimates, it is feared that more than 130,000 people have died, while more than 1.5 million people are in need of assistance. I also understand that 50% of the population live in the cyclone affected areas.

There are major challenges in mounting this operation to deliver sufficient levels of assistance to the affected communities. The Government in Burma is refusing to accept international humanitarian assistance. There are still major health problems two weeks after the cyclone, and the vulnerable communities are suffering due to a lack of access to drinking water or sanitation, while the risk of disease is colossal. While I acknowledge that some supplies finally seem to be getting through, they are nowhere near enough to meet the needs of the affected population. The Burmese Government has been curtailing this distribution and will not allow those experienced in providing aid relied to go into the country.

Burma is a rich country, with great natural resources in metal, stone and minerals. These resources are being plundered by the junta, which is diverting state resources to maintain the lifestyle of its members. Of the 50 million people living in Burma, 30% are very poor and operating below the poverty line. They are malnourished and they have no education. With this background, how can we get aid into the country? It is only right that we make known our views about democracy and on how we can assist these people.

The regime made promises that the country would move towards democracy, with a planned referendum followed by elections. The decision of the Burmese Government effectively to ignore the major humanitarian disaster and to proceed with this referendum in most of its territory can only be deplored. It clearly indicates that the Government was more worried about itself rather than the lives of the people in the country. The referendum will not reflect the real wishes of the people of Burma, and the new constitution is a sham. Prioritising the referendum over aid distribution clearly indicates that the continuation of the military junta and the lifestyle of Burma's rulers is more important than the lives of the most vulnerable, who do not seem to matter.

We need dialogue on democratic reform. The UN Secretary General must get involved and we must bring the Burmese Government to the table. We must call on the country's neighbours, namely, China, India and south-east Asian countries such as Thailand and Indonesia to push for this reform. We in Ireland will continue to do everything we can through the EU to urge proactive engagement in pushing the Burmese regime towards democracy.

The obstruction of the international aid effort by the Burmese Government is simply not acceptable. We welcome the contribution by the Irish Government of €1 million for emergency relief. That has been channelled through the NGOs, UN agencies and the Red Cross. I also welcome the support, through its substantive annual contribution to respond to emergencies, of the UN central emergency response fund and the Red Cross managed disaster relief emergency fund. The purpose of these is to facilitate the rapid response to humanitarian emergencies.

There is a great sense of volunteerism in Ireland, for which we are known. We have dispatched non-food humanitarian supplies of plastic sheeting for temporary shelter, blankets, mosquito nets and tents to be distributed to the affected communities. The rapid response corps is on standby, ready for deployment to humanitarian emergencies.

The people in Burma have long made demands for democracy, freedom of expression and justice but these aspirations have been met by censorship. Those critical of the regime were imprisoned or otherwise silenced. The Burmese authorities have isolated the cyclone areas from the rest of the world and expelled foreign aid workers. Only a trickle of international aid is reaching the 2 million people made homeless. Through the EU Presidency, an emergency meeting of the General Affairs Council has been convened to underline the severity of the crisis alongside the UN Secretary General and to express support for any initiative to help those affected.

I acknowledge the strong support of the efforts of the UN Red Cross and the NGOs to bring aid to the Burmese people. It is important that this aid be administered and monitored by experienced humanitarian staff. I urge the Burmese authorities to facilitate access to the international experts and expedite delivery of visas and travel permits. Ireland has come to the fore in calling for full and free access to the affected areas through embassies in neighbouring countries and will continue to use diplomatic influence to improve the situation. Knowing that China has experienced its own earthquake, it may be able to push for access to humanitarian aid. I deplore what has happened. I am reading the newspaper reports every day and cannot say strongly enough how much each of us must push for democracy in a country that has been so silenced through the years. Through the UN, the EU and the General Affairs Council we may be able to push forward moves to bring reform.