Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 288: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the situation in Burma; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38720/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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As I have stated recently in the House, the situation in Burma remains of major concern. There has been a conspicuous absence of political progress since the events of September 2007, and repression by the military of monks, political activists and others continues. In May, the military junta pressed ahead with a fundamentally flawed referendum on a new Constitution for Burma. At the same time, they also extended the detention order on Aung San Suu Kyi for a further six months. I immediately condemned this action and renewed the Government's call for her release.

The Burmese regime has also failed to engage seriously with the UN Secretary General's Special Representative, Dr Ibrahim Gambari. This is gravely disappointing. The Government continues to support actively the work of the Secretary General, his Special Representative, the UN's Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burma and the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights. I believe the role of the Secretary General personally is vital if the goals of democratisation and national reconciliation in Burma are to be achieved. In this regard, I believe that every effort must be made by the international community to ensure that the elections that the Burmese regime has promised for 2010 will be free, fair and fully inclusive, and likewise the process leading up to them.

Ireland remains committed to helping the Burmese people in their struggle for justice, democracy and development. In pursuit of this goal, the Government has engaged in diplomatic activity at Ministerial and senior official level with Burma's neighbours and in international fora. I welcome in this regard the fact that the recent Asia-Europe (ASEM) Summit, which the Taoiseach attended, adopted a very positive position on the Burmese situation. The support of countries in the Asia region is crucial to a resolution of the problems in Burma.

During my visit to the UN in September, I raised the situation in Burma in the course of discussions with senior UN officials and with the Foreign Minister of Indonesia, who is also deeply concerned about the situation there. The Government has also worked to enhance the EU's role in supporting the people of Burma, including securing the extension of EU sanctions against the regime in December 2007. I will be discussing the situation in Burma with other EU Foreign Ministers when I travel to Brussels next week for the General Affairs and External Relations Council.

The humanitarian situation following Cyclone Nargis is still very difficult but, thanks to facilitation efforts by the UN and ASEAN and the generous response of the international community, the Burmese people most affected are being actively assisted in their recovery efforts. In this regard, over €1.35 million in Irish Aid funding was provided to the emergency relief effort, as well as two airlifts of essential humanitarian supplies from our pre-positioned emergency stockpiles in Brindisi, Italy and in the Curragh.

We have also provided support to Burma's government in exile — the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), to civil society groups in Burma and to the Burma advocacy group, Burma Action Ireland.