Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 490: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the outcome of the EU General Affairs and External Relations Council on 26 May 2008 regarding the crisis in Zimbabwe; and the further action he has taken to support the all-party motion on Zimbabwe, passed on 15 May 2008. [22788/08]

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

I propose to take Questions Nos. 490 and 496 to 501, inclusive, together.

The situation in Zimbabwe continues to be both shocking and deeply disturbing. With voting in the second round of the Presidential election due to take place on 27 June, the situation remains violent and unstable. At least 50 people have been killed since March, and targeted violence has resulted in thousands being displaced, rendering it impossible for them to vote. Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) activists — including MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai himself — have repeatedly been arrested and detained. Political meetings have been banned. The opposition has no access to the state controlled media. Suspected MDC supporters are being sacked from their jobs, and in many cases have been beaten and tortured. Most recently, and very worryingly, the decision by President Mugabe to suspend NGO activities — including the delivery of humanitarian aid and the provision of health services — will potentially threaten lives.

I welcomed the wide consensus on Zimbabwe in the Dáil when we debated the issue on 15 May. We agreed then on the urgent need to end violence and to create an environment conducive to a fair election. We agreed on the importance of election monitoring and on continued Irish Aid support for the Zimbabwean people. We also agreed on the pivotal role which Zimbabwe's neighbours have to play in resolving this crisis.

In keeping with the wish expressed by many Deputies that Ireland's views be conveyed at EU level, at the meeting of the General Affairs and External Relations meeting in Brussels on 26 May, Ireland urged that strong political pressure on the Mugabe regime be maintained until the crisis is resolved. Following that discussion, EU Foreign Ministers again called on the Government of Zimbabwe to ensure a level playing field and a secure environment, so that the results of the second round will reflect the free and democratic will of the Zimbabwean people. They specifically underlined the importance of the publication of results outside polling stations, as stipulated by Zimbabwean law. EU Foreign Ministers again discussed the situation in Zimbabwe yesterday, 16 June.

The Government would have strongly supported election monitoring by Irish observers through the EU or UN, and it is clear that there was also strong support in the Dáil for this approach. However, Zimbabwean Government representatives have explicitly made clear their refusal to accept monitors from the EU or from any EU Member State. The consent of the host country is a practical necessity — without permission to visit polling stations and count centres, it is not possible to make a credible assessment of the election.

Ireland and the EU have strongly supported monitoring of the Zimbabwean election by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and by the African Union, and we have encouraged both organisations to increase their number of monitors over the first round. SADC monitors have already begun deploy, well in advance of polling day, the importance of which many Deputies had stressed. However, local observers, who played an important role in the first round, have been told that their invitations are no longer valid for the second round. Many local observers have also been attacked and beaten as a result of their work.

Since the current phase of the Zimbabwe crisis began after the 29 March elections, Ireland has conveyed our concerns about Zimbabwe directly to our partner countries in Africa. We have encouraged the countries of the Southern African region to continue to take the lead in pressurizing the Mugabe regime to respect the democratic verdict of the Zimbabwean people. The Irish Ambassador to Zimbabwe, who is resident in South Africa, also travelled to Zimbabwe to witness the election on 29 March, and will do so again for the 27 June round. Overall, however, experience shows that it is not possible to impose solutions from the outside, and there are few effective levers for the EU to put pressure on Zimbabwe, so the influence which Zimbabwe's neighbours bring to bear is crucial in securing change. There are also continuing reports of efforts at mediation, possibly with a view to establishing a Government of National Unity.

As regards a peacekeeping force, conditions on the ground in Zimbabwe are not currently appropriate for such deployment. Peacekeepers are generally most effective when deployed in support of an existing peace agreement. However, in the event of a political settlement in Zimbabwe, it is not clear that a peacekeeping force would be required at that time.

Many Deputies have made helpful proposals about how Ireland should react to positive change in Zimbabwe, and it is in the context of such a positive transformation that such issues can best be considered, including examining how Irish Aid can make a strong and significant contribution to the new democratic dispensation that hopefully will be in place.