Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 97: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has raised the issue of the imprisonment and ill treatment of the leader of the opposition and members of the opposition in Zimbabwe with the appropriate authorities; if he has raised this issue with his colleagues in the European Parliament; and the actions they propose to take. [10514/07]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 249: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the extent to which he or his colleagues at the UN or EU have been in a position to positively influence the situation in Zimbabwe; the extent to which the international community can assist in the situation concerning the opposition leader; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10827/07]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 97 and 249 together.

As I made clear in my reply earlier to Questions 80 and 84, the political, economic and human rights situation in Zimbabwe is a matter of the most serious concern. There is currently no indication that the Zimbabwean government is willing to alter the malign policies which have destroyed the country's economy. Nor is there any sign of an intention to introduce real and necessary democratic reforms. On the contrary, we have seen increased repression, with large-scale arrests of peaceful demonstrators and, this month, incontrovertible evidence that opposition activists have been seriously ill-treated in police detention.

The actions of the Zimbabwean police at a peaceful church-sponsored rally organised by the Save Zimbabwe Campaign on 11 March resulted in one death and several injuries. Many of those who were arrested — including Morgan Tsvangarai, the leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change — suffered further severe injuries while they were in police custody.

Not only did the Zimbabwean Government fail to discharge its responsibility for the safety and well-being of those in custody, but the open and unapologetic attitude of President Mugabe and the Zimbabwean leadership in relation to this shocking incident has been frankly outrageous. The police action in the break up of the protest contravenes the internationally recognised rights of freedom of speech and of assembly. The ill-treatment of those in custody also infringes international human rights standards, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, of which Zimbabwe is a signatory. On 12 March, the UN Secretary General expressed concern about the detention of opposition leaders in Zimbabwe, and condemned the beating of those leaders in police custody.

On 12 March, the EU Presidency issued a statement on behalf of the Union condemning the violent break-up of the protest on 11 March and the ongoing violent suppression of the freedom of opinion and of assembly, as well as of other fundamental rights in Zimbabwe. The Presidency called on the Government of Zimbabwe to focus on resolving the country's pressing problems in a dialogue with all of the country's political forces.

EU Heads of Mission attempted to visit the opposition leaders in prison. However, they were denied access to those detained. On 14 March, the EU Presidency issued a further statement, noting the release of 14 members of the opposition and calling for the immediate release of the other detainees. On 17 March the Chairman of the African Union Commission, Mr Alpha Konare, expressed deep concern at recent developments in Zimbabwe and recalled the need for scrupulous respect for human rights and democratic principles there.

I also issued a statement on behalf of the Government, condemning the disgraceful actions of the police, and expressing my condolences to the family of the protester who was killed. I urged the Zimbabwean government to cease suppressing the basic fundamental rights of its people. I noted that a new approach, which includes dialogue between all political forces, is needed to resolve Zimbabwe's serious political, social and economic problems. Now is the time for the international community, including the EU and the members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to work together to help bring about peaceful change in Zimbabwe.

In a further development, opposition MP Nelson Chamisa was arrested and brutally treated while on his way to an EU meeting in Brussels on 18 March, while on 17 March two other opposition MPs were prevented from leaving Zimbabwe for medical treatment. The EU Presidency has issued a statement expressing its outrage at these acts and calling on the Zimbabwean Government to release all detained opposition politicians immediately, to enable them to have access to legal assistance and medical care, and to allow representatives of the EU Presidency to visit them.

As a mark of the EU's concern, EU Presidencies in the SADC countries have taken the step of expressing to their host governments the concern of the EU and its Member States about the recent developments in Zimbabwe. Senior EU officials are discussing the situation in Zimbabwe in Brussels today. The EU already has restrictive measures in place against the leadership of Zimbabwe, and last month the Common Position on these restrictive measures was renewed until February 2008. I am not aware of whether there are current plans for the issue to be discussed at the European Parliament, but I do know that developments in Zimbabwe are followed very closely there.

We will continue to work together with our partners in the EU and the wider international community for the peaceful political change which will help to provide a brighter future for the beleaguered people of Zimbabwe. The disgraceful events of 11 March should encourage us all in the international community to redouble our efforts in this regard. Our Embassy in Pretoria is accredited to Zimbabwe and I have instructed our Ambassador there to raise these issues directly and forcefully with the Zimbabwean authorities at an early date.