Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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71. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the efforts being made to encourage the international community to take action against the government of Myanmar in view of the recent escalation of violence in Rakhine State, Myanmar; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53376/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I continue to have deep concerns about the violence and human rights abuses in Rakhine State and I have condemned the excessive actions of the Myanmar security forces on numerous occasions since 25 August. Ireland has consistently expressed our concern at EU level and with our international partners.

A devastating humanitarian crisis has developed as a result of these actions in Rakhine State, and over 640,000 people, most of whom are members of the Rohingya community, have fled to Bangladesh where they are facing extremely challenging circumstances.

There are wide-ranging efforts being made at national, EU and the wider international levels to address the situation. At a political level, Ireland and the EU continue to address this crisis in line with the Conclusions setting out the EU’s position on the situation in Myanmar which were adopted by the Foreign Affairs Council on 16 October.

Minister of State Ciarán Cannon visited Myanmar from 19-21 November 2017 to represent Ireland at a meeting of Asian and European foreign ministers in the ASEM format, which in addition to allowing broader discussions, offered an opportunity for ministers to express their concern on the situation in Rakhine state.

Minister of State Cannon directly conveyed Ireland’s serious concerns in a bilateral meeting with Myanmar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, U Kyaw Tin. He urged the Government of Myanmar to implement the recommendations of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State in full and to allow the safe, voluntary and sustainable return of the people that have fled their homes.

While there, he also met with a range of Government, UN and civil society organisations to learn at first hand of the work they are doing and the challenges they face.

Ireland has also continued to engage on this issue at the United Nations and was an active participant in the Special Session of the Human Rights Council that took place in Geneva on 5 December, where Ireland’s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva outlined our concerns. At that session, Ireland supported a resolution expressing alarm and grave concern at the situation and calling on the Myanmar government to ensure the protection of the human rights of all persons in Myanmar, including persons belonging to the Rohingya Muslim community and other minorities.

Ireland will continue to engage at a national level, through our EU membership and with the broader international community to press for a positive and long-term solution to the situation in Rakhine State, including for the Rohingya community, and for the significant number of refugees who are now situated in Bangladesh.