Written answers

Tuesday, 30 March 2010

Department of Foreign Affairs

Human Rights Issues

11:00 pm

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 294: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on the situation in the various African countries which have been the subject of human rights concerns, war, famine, genocide; the nature or extent of ongoing or intended preventative measures; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13527/10]

Photo of Micheál MartinMicheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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No part of the world is totally free from human rights abuses, and some countries in Africa also experience war and hunger. As I have stated on previous occasions in answer to very similar questions, it is not the policy of the Government to list countries most seriously affected by such issues, and I shall therefore not focus on individual countries.

Human rights concerns remain central to our foreign policy. Together with our EU partners, Ireland monitors closely the human rights situations in many countries throughout the world, on the basis of information obtained from a variety of sources including both official and non-governmental organisations.

Where and when the situation warrants, we make known our concerns about human rights violations to the Governments in question. We do this either bilaterally, through the EU, or through action at the UN General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council, including, in the case of the latter, through the new Universal Periodic Review process whereby the human rights performance of each UN State is reviewed.

Active participation in multilateral organisations such as the EU, the UN and the Council of Europe provides opportunities for Ireland to voice its concerns regarding human rights abuses. Through these organisations, international pressure can be brought to bear on those responsible for the violation of human rights.

For example, together with our EU partners, Ireland has been a consistent and strong supporter of the International Criminal Court, recognising it as an essential means of combating impunity for the most serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law. The Court's Prosecutor has opened investigations into a number of country situations and we will continue to monitor this work closely.

With regard to the issue of starvation, it is estimated that more than a billion people today do not have enough food. Ireland is responding to this challenge and in doing, so we are working bilaterally in our programme countries, with our EU and partners and at a global level through the UN agencies. Since the publication of the report of the Hunger Task Force in September 2008, Ireland's focus on hunger reduction has become a cornerstone of Irish Aid's development programme. In particular, efforts are concentrated on the three priority areas identified in the report, namely: increasing smallholder agricultural productivity in Africa; targeting under-nutrition (especially maternal and infant); and promoting governance and leadership action on tackling global hunger. Nowhere is this work more challenging than in countries affected by conflict where it is critically important to move quickly with large-scale emergency food assistance in order to save lives.

Irish Aid is committed to responding to emerging global hunger issues. Funds are targeted at a number of different agriculture, food security and nutrition interventions. Food assistance and therapeutic care save lives when starvation has already caused malnutrition but it is also vitally important to focus on prevention – to reach vulnerable groups through nutritional interventions which have long-term positive effects. This means a particular focus on women and young children. Best practice and scientific research demonstrates that by intervening as early and aggressively as possible during the short interval from pregnancy to 24 months of age leads to greater reductions in child under-nutrition than later interventions aimed at reversing under-nutrition.

With regard to security, UN peacekeeping missions in Africa have a major role in stabilising former and current conflict zones. Members of the Irish Defence Forces have participated in numerous UN peacekeeping missions in Africa, including in the Congo, Eritrea, Liberia and currently in Chad.

Situations which fully conform to an internationally accepted definition of genocide are thankfully extremely rare. Nevertheless, there are a number of current situations in Africa which give rise to extreme concern. The UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide is mandated to alert the international community to the potential of genocide in a particular country or region, and to make recommendations on actions to prevent or halt genocide.

In developing a sustainable approach which properly addresses the root causes of human rights abuses, war, famine and genocide, African leadership and responsibility are crucial. This is recognised by the EU and UN, which are both working to build the capacities of African States and the African Union to respond to these challenges. Ireland is committed to playing its part in this work, and I believe that our comprehensive and inclusive approach to the challenges of human rights abuses, poverty, conflict and security stands the best chance of facilitating real and positive change in the lives of millions of people in Africa.

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