Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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Question 160: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if, following a joint foreign affairs sub-committee on human rights meeting in November 2008, he will make a statement on the poisoning of Roma in north Kosovo; if the Taoiseach raised this matter with relevant authorities during his visit to Kosovo in December 2008; and the assistance offered in seeking to end this violation of human rights. [1942/09]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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As my colleague, Minister of State Peter Power T.D., emphasised during an adjournment debate on this issue on 25 November 2008, Ireland is deeply concerned about displaced Roma families who are residing in camps in Northern Mitrovica, and in particular about reports that residents of these camps are exposed to high levels of lead contamination. During his visit to Kosovo on 22 December last, the Taoiseach, who was accompanied by the Minister for Defence, met with President Sejdiu and Prime Minister Thaçi. The issue of the displaced Roma was among the topics discussed. The Taoiseach particularly emphasised the plight of a group located at a camp in Gracanica.

Prior to that, the issue of the closing of camps and re-locating the occupants had also been discussed at a meeting in Kosovo on 1 December between Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, Finance Minister Ahmet Shala, and a senior official from the EU Commission's Directorate General on Enlargement. The Commission promised the support of all EU institutions operating in Kosovo to ensure that this urgent humanitarian crisis is addressed. At my request, officials have raised this issue on a number of occasions in recent months, most recently at an EU Working Group meeting on the Western Balkans held just under two weeks ago. The Kosovar Government has said in response to these representations that it will make every effort to find a new location for the residents of the camps and establish arrangements for co-financing this project with other stakeholders.

Ireland has supported a broad range of projects targeted at assisting the Roma community in Kosovo. For the period 2005-2009, Irish Aid has allocated €850,000 towards development work with the Roma community in Kosovo. In addition, €200,000 has been provided for the World Bank's Roma Education Fund, which has benefited the Roma community in eleven countries in Central and Eastern Europe, including Kosovo. Ireland fully supports all efforts to address the plight of the residents of the camps and will remain in contact with the responsible authorities on this issue, including through our Embassy in Budapest, which is accredited to Kosovo.