Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 16 Apr 2003

Vol. 565 No. 4

Humanitarian Aid: Statements.

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (Mr. Kitt)

I welcome this opportunity to debate once again the humanitarian situation in Iraq. It is important that this House should continue to pay close attention to one of the most critical challenges on the international agenda at present. While the intensive military phase has abated, it is clear that a humanitarian crisis of massive proportions is unfolding in Iraq with each passing day. Millions of innocent Iraqi people are suffering from the effects of the conflict, from hunger and water shortages and from deprivation of other kinds. There are large numbers of civilian dead. As hospitals struggle to cope, misery continues for those wounded in the conflict. The spectre of disease looms. In short, the humanitarian crisis being suffered by the people of Iraq is unimaginable.

The most immediate priority is to facilitate access for humanitarian workers. Clearly the restoration of law and order is of critical importance. Another vital priority is to secure the restoration of water and power supplies throughout the country. There is an urgent need for food and medicine in large quantities.

In any conflict the primary responsibility for the protection and welfare of the civilian population rests with the warring parties. In a case of foreign occupation it is the occupying power that has the responsibility to ensure the provision of food and medical supplies to the civilian population. I would like to see a safe and secure environment created as soon as possible which will enable badly needed aid to be delivered to those who need it most.

The Red Cross and UNICEF, two international organisations with which we are co-operating closely, are performing heroically on the ground in the most difficult circumstances. Operating mainly with national Iraqi staff, they have proved by their actions in the past three weeks that they are the best equipped and have the requisite capacity and experience to respond effectively to this crisis. The Red Cross is working hard with the coalition forces and civilian administrators to achieve conditions which will facilitate the massive relief operation which is now required.

The staff of humanitarian agencies such as the Red Cross and UNICEF have put their lives at risk on a daily basis in selflessly responding to the needs of the most vulnerable people. I pay particular tribute to Mr. Vatche Arslanian, the chief of logistics for the Red Cross in Baghdad, who was killed in crossfire on 9 April.

UNICEF is continuing to implement emergency relief operations within Iraq, carried out by committed and experienced Iraqi nationals. It is delivering food, water and medicines to hospitals, orphanages and other institutions in Baghdad and Basra. It is co-ordinating closely with the Red Cross and other agencies and organisations.

Other key partners for the Government in our response to this humanitarian crisis are Irish NGOs such as Concern, GOAL and Trócaire. These NGOs have a proven track record for delivering emergency assistance rapidly and effectively. We are supporting the vital work which they will be carrying out on the ground as they become operational. Key priorities for them will be the provision of emergency support for health services, water and sanitation, food aid and support for internally displaced persons.

In my discussions with these NGOs and others I have stressed the need for effective co-ordination to maximise the value of our assistance. They will be working closely with partner organisations within Iraq and with the relevant UN agencies. Trócaire is currently operating in Iraq through its partner Caritas Iraq, Concern will be operating in northern Iraq with a number of local partners, and GOAL will be working with the World Food Programme on emergency food distribution.

Iraq is facing severe food shortages. Prior to the beginning of the current conflict, 60% of the Iraqi population – 16 million people – were dependent on rations delivered under the UN Oil for Food Programme, OFFP, as their only food supply. The suspension of this programme on 17 March, when the UN Secretary General withdrew United Nations personnel from Iraq, put even greater pressures on an already extremely vulnerable population. Although Resolution 1472, adopted by the Security Council on 28 March, gave the UN Secretary General the flexibility to prioritise contracts under the Oil for Food Programme to help meet immediate humanitarian needs, this programme is still not back in operation. Latest figures indicate that household food stocks in some areas will be exhausted by the end of April. It is vital to have this programme up and running within a very short timeframe.

There has been some limited progress. For example, food deliveries have resumed in three northern governorates where the security assessment is relatively favourable. In other areas of the country, however, looting of food stores has been a problem for the WFP. Within this difficult environment I hope that the programme can be resumed in all areas as quickly as possible. It will be a race against time to ensure that basic food reaches those who are in greatest need at present. Resumption of this programme can only happen, however, if a secure environment exists to permit the safe delivery of this food.

A point which is sometimes lost sight of is that what we are witnessing in Iraq at present comes on top of years of hardship and difficulty suffered by the Iraqi people. Since 1991 the people of Iraq have seen a dramatic drop in their living standards. In the league table that measures quality of life – the Human Development Index, HDI – Iraq fell from 96th place to 127th place in a little over ten years. No country has fallen so far so rapidly. This deterioration is translated at the basic human level into increased child deaths, malnutrition and high rates of disease. Iraqi children have suffered greatly and are still facing extreme risks at this time. A number of highly publicised cases have appeared on our television screens over the past week, but there are countless more. Children constitute half of the population of Iraq and are clearly one of the most vulnerable groups.

Another priority concern for us will be the many Iraqi people who have been displaced by the conflict. The latest indications are that the majority of people in the south have remained in their homes rather than fleeing to safer areas either within the country or to neighbouring states. The majority of internally displaced people in the north are now returning to their homes. We will be maintaining close contact with the UNHCR in relation to the movement of internally displaced people over the coming weeks and will be considering what has to be done to address their needs.

From the outset of this crisis, I have worked closely with Irish NGOs and the key international organisations to shape the Government's response. On 25 March I announced a special €5 million emergency assistance package for the people of Iraq, with particular emphasis on women and children. This announcement, coming within a few days of the start of the military campaign, was one of the first to be made by any Government. Initial funding of €1.5 million from this package was provided through UNICEF and the Red Cross. Yesterday I announced details of how the balance of that funding will be spent through Irish NGOs and international agencies.

Part of our funding will respond to a UN flash appeal in relation to the humanitarian situation in Iraq over the next six months, which issued recently. This assistance will be provided in strict adherence to the humanitarian principles of neutrality and impartiality that underpin the mandates of the United Nations and its emergency response agencies. The UN Secretariat has made it clear that a generous response to this flash appeal is critical, as the contracts in the oil for food pipeline will not go anywhere near meeting the essential needs of the Iraqi people in the short term.

The UN appeal has two components, food and non-food needs. It is estimated that the food needs of the Iraqi population will amount to 480,000 metric tonnes per month for at least a three month period. Non-food needs include the provision of water, health, shelter, education, protection, de-mining and emergency repairs. Of our package, €1.9 million will respond to this appeal, helping programmes which are being implemented by our key partners, the World Food Programme, WFP, UNICEF and the UN office for the co-ordination of humanitarian aid.

The European Union and its member states are the largest donors of development assistance in the world. The European Union, including the Commission, has allocated a total of €514 million in emergency humanitarian aid for the crisis in Iraq and has delivered over €157 million of this to date. This aid has been distributed via the Red Cross, UN agencies and NGOs. I welcome this rapid response and I will continue to use every opportunity to highlight the humanitarian needs of Iraq to my colleagues in the EU.

My top priority as Minister of State with responsibility for development co-operation and human rights is to ensure that our support in a crisis such as this is focused on the protection and saving of human lives. This is a humanitarian imperative to which I am absolutely committed. All our assistance will go towards saving lives and meeting the basic needs of the most vulnerable Iraqi people.

I believe that although the challenges we face are horrendous, they can be met with a concerted effort from the international community. It is vital that the UN should play a central role in this respect. This issue was raised by the Taoiseach in his recent meeting with President Bush in Hillsborough. As Deputies will be aware, the Taoiseach also had phone conversations with the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, and had a meeting with him in Athens today. The UN has a substantial record of achievement in relation to the response of the international community to humanitarian crises such as that which we are facing in Iraq.

The Government welcomes the news that the conflict appears to be drawing to a close. We have, in the past, expressed our profound regret that the United States and its allies felt that such action was necessary. However, as the fighting comes to an end and the people of Iraq adjust to the reality that the regime of Saddam Hussein has collapsed, it is necessary to look forward and consider what can be done to ensure that the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Iraq goes forward as rapidly as possible and for the benefit of the Iraqi people.

The Government has been deeply disquieted by the dissension which affected the international community in the lead-up to the conflict. We believe it is now time to move beyond these divisions. Not least, it is essential to begin repairing the damage to the United Nations. The Security Council should be the guarantor of international peace and security in the future. This will only be possible if it is united and determined. The member states of the UN, particularly of the Security Council, must act to restore the authority of the council. They have the opportunity to begin this work as they consider the complex post-conflict issues which must now be addressed if Iraq is to emerge from this crisis as a peaceful and representative democracy.

We wish to see the UN at the heart of the efforts to deal with the post-conflict situation, and not only in respect of humanitarian assistance. The Government believes, as do our partners in the European Union, that the UN should be at the heart of the reconstruction process. It has the experience, capacity and perceived impartiality to carry this objective forward. The work which it has already done in post-conflict situations as diverse as East Timor and Afghanistan is all the proof which anyone could ask for of its capacity to deliver what is needed today. Going beyond a purely humanitarian involvement, the UN's role must not be confined to humanitarian. The UN should play a significant political role in the broader task of helping Iraqis to assemble a legitimate and accepted administration and of rebuilding Iraq as a functioning country with a viable democracy. We will listen carefully to the judgment of Secretary General Annan in this regard.

It is also essential that the Iraqis themselves, including the millions of decent Iraqis who live and work in Iraq, play an important and expanding role in the administration. I am pleased to see that this is being increasingly recognised and that efforts are being made on the ground to get members of the Iraqi police and civil service to return to their duties.

The assurance of Iraq's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, with every appropriate involvement on the UN's part, will be of the greatest importance for Arab public opinion. It will help to dispel fears that a rule from outside could be imposed. We still have to guard against the twin dangers of destabilisation in the region and the worsening of the terrorist threat.

The conflict in Iraq and its repercussions have, to some extent, taken the spotlight off the festering Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the international effort to resolve it. It is important that this should not be allowed to remain the case. Indeed, in my view, the recent events in Iraq make it even more necessary for the international community to focus on the situation in the occupied territories and the associated conflicts between Israel and Syria and Lebanon.

The European Union as a whole remains committed to the Middle East peace process. The High Representative, Javier Solana, and his staff are fully engaged in the search for peace and maintain constant channels both to the parties and to the other international actors who have a role to play.

At its meeting on 21 March the European Council concluded that the Iraq crisis made it all the more imperative that the other problems of the region be tackled and resolved. The Heads of State and Government repeated their support for a two state solution on the basis of the 1967 borders. They called for the immediate publication and implementation of the road map and for parallel progress in the security, political and economic fields. Today, in Athens, EU Heads of State and Government discussed the Middle East peace process with the Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan. They considered the means to give effect to the road map and the most effective proposals for implementation. I am hopeful that we can now see the prospect of a settlement to this most intractable of international conflicts.

I pledge our determination to work as part of a concerted international humanitarian effort in Iraq involving the United Nations, the European Union and NGOs. We must now be ready to assist the Iraqi people to cope with the effects of the conflict and to ensure that the humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable are met. As Minister of State with responsibility for our development and humanitarian assistance, I will do everything in my power to support this task. The challenge is enormous for us all but I believe it can be met.

Mr. G. Mitchell

This evening, in a church in my constituency, lie the remains of a lance-corporal who went to Iraq to do his duty. He was a talented young man and an upright and decent person. It is very easy for us to be condemnatory of people who took action in this war and to take sides and make political comments. When we think about what has happened in Iraq, not just in recent days but over a very long period, we should remember that we are not here to make political points but to assist in the humanitarian crisis that now faces Iraq.

We were all struck by the television pictures of young Ali with his arms missing, his body burned and a smile on his face, having lost his parents and siblings. There are many other Alis whom we have not seen. He represents many other children, not all of whom have suffered because of the recent war. Many of them suffered over the years, and not all as a result of sanctions. Many suffered by the deliberate action of their own Government.

I was, perhaps, even more struck by a photograph on the front page of the Irish Independent which showed a tortured woman and her two young children, a boy and a girl about the same ages as my own two youngest children, whose father had just been shot dead, with another of his children and another person, in a car at a checkpoint. One would have to be a stone not to be touched by the terrible suffering on their faces.

As we address this issue as our last act before we adjourn, we should remember that it is important for us, as representatives of the Irish people, to do everything we can to assist those people. We must do so directly, through the European Union and the United Nations and in any other way we can. There will be an opportunity for the Joint Committee on European Affairs to talk to the Minister before he goes to the European Council and for the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, even when the Houses are in recess, to continue to address this matter as it did today. In addressing it, however, we must be aware that we are talking about people who endured terrible suffering and that apportioning blame will not help the situation or contribute to its solution.

I find it hard to understand why a war which we were led to understand was so meticulously planned gave rise to a situation of chaos where there is no police force on the ground and there is looting and a complete break down in the rule of law. I hope that situation can be dealt with because where there is no law and order there cannot be successful delivery of humanitarian aid.

By the Minister of State's own estimate, 450,000 tonnes of aid will be required by Iraq per month. That is more than twice what has ever been delivered in a crisis situation. Given the opportunity the Minister of State has had since the debate on the Fine Gael Private Members' motion last week to examine the matter, can he tell the House his estimate of the ability of the international community to deliver that level of aid and how he sees it being delivered in the short to medium term?

The situation in Iraq changes hour by hour but according to Oxfam a truckload of 13.3 tonnes of medicines, soap and detergents arrived in Baghdad today to provide assistance to thousands of malnourished Iraqi children in hospitals and paediatric wards across the country. It is a drop in the ocean in terms of the 480,000 tonnes needed but it will mean a lot to those who receive it. Every day 20 water tankers are arriving in Umm Qasr from Kuwait but that is nowhere near enough. In Zubayr, a town of 500,000 people just south of Basra, there is no piped water because the crucial booster stations to ensure pressure for taps have been looted and are not functioning. Oxfam hopes to fly a plane load of pipes, pumps and other equipment into Kuwait from England on Tuesday so work on the Zubayr pumping station can be started. These are the basic needs of the community at this time.

Some of what Oxfam found demonstrated that the breakdown in law and order is doing as much, if not more, damage to Iraq's infrastructure as the fighting of recent weeks, extraordinary as that may seem. In Basra, water pumping stopped last week because staff had fled the plant fearing looters. This plant had already been repaired by the Red Cross after it was damaged during the 18 day siege of Basra. The British military forces in charge of the area have not yet given security clearance for the United Nations and aid agencies to enter Basra.

The situation in Baghdad is near total anarchy. According to Oxfam, the United Nations has protested to the coalition over its failure to control lawlessness in Baghdad and other cities, reminding the forces of their duty to maintain law and order under international humanitarian law. The International Committee for the Red Cross reports that one key hospital has no water or electricity and that surgeons are operating under very difficult conditions. I had never seen a doctor cry on television, I felt they were trained not to, but I saw a doctor crying on television the other night and I was taken aback. He was crying over his patients, an extraordinary thing to see. The conditions under which surgeons, doctors and nurses are operating are extremely difficult. Many hospital staff are unable to report for work. The World Health Organisation says there is an urgent need for antibiotics, pain killers and surgical items.

Oxfam's second shipment with the All Our Children organisation to children's hospitals left Jordan on 10 April and is in Iraq. The three truck convoy led by Première Urgence is carrying surgical equipment, blankets and sheets. Oxfam provided funding for the shipment through All Our Children. In the Basra area, UNICEF reports diarrhoea rates ten times as high as normal in the hospitals of Umm Qasr, mainly among young children. This can be deadly for children who are already malnourished, as 30% of Iraqi children are.

Looting is rampant in Basra, with aid being removed from military trucks, staff fleeing water treatment plants and hospital staff not turning up out of fear. The water and power situation has improved but the BBC has reported that civilians are begging for water and visibly malnourished children are in dire need of it. Oxfam maintains that occupying forces have a duty to maintain law and order and public life. Over and above their duties as warriors, they have a duty to assist and protect civilians.

The Government promised to do all it could to help the humanitarian effort in Iraq when it supported Fine Gael's Private Members' motion last week. I draw the Government's attention to what Trócaire said. It has launched an appeal on behalf Caritas Iraq to support more than 43,000 families or over 260,000 internally displaced people in Iraq in the next three months. While Caritas Iraq is seeking €8 million in total, Trócaire hopes to raise €2 million in Ireland to contribute the vital work of its partner in the region. The Government could do worse than help Trócaire at this vital hour. Trócaire says that 1,740 families – 10,440 people – living in church buildings will be targeted, along with 21,000 families – 126,000 people – living with host families. The 21,000 host families will also benefit under this programme. Nearly half the population targeted is under 14 years or over 60 years of age.

Fine Gael's position on the future governance of Iraq has been clear since the start. We have always believed in the legitimacy and primacy of the United Nations. For this reason it is imperative that the UN oversees the administration of Iraq as soon as is feasible. Now that the war appears to be ending, it is time to involve the United Nations centrally so that humanitarian aid can be delivered and an interim civil administration can be put in place that enjoys international legitimacy and support.

In the long term there will be a need to heal divisions in the European Union and the United Nations that this conflict caused and a better way to ensure that the values of community and multilateralism are respected must be put in place.

I draw the attention of the House to the statement made by the European Union that the UN must continue to play a central role during and after the current crisis. The UN has the unique capacity and practical experience in co-ordinating assistance in post-conflict states. The Security Council should give the United Nations a strong mandate for this mission. That is the EU view and one which this House would support.

This conflict flew in the face of a 60 year tradition of multilateralism that led to an unprecedented period of peace and stability. Despite the removal of Saddam Hussein, a brutal dictator whose Ba'ath Party ruined, not ran, Iraq, the international community remains convulsed and it will take some time before trust is restored at UN, EU and NATO levels. The recreation of Iraq and the rebuilding of a shattered nation, could allow for some of that trust to be restored. It is vital that the United States and the United Kingdom give way to the UN so it can take its rightful place as the international guarantor of democracy.

The plan of the United States for the country, in a nutshell, allows for a US led agency set up under the auspices of the Pentagon. It has taken charge of civilian matters for the foreseeable future. There are plans to set up an interim Iraqi authority in the next few months but it is still not clear who will make up this interim government, how its members will be chosen and what power it will have. US officials have been vague about how long the US military will remain in the country. The Americans have already brought together representatives of exiled Iraqi opposition groups and local tribal and religious leaders in an attempt to lay the groundwork for a new Government but the various groups are themselves divided over their visions for a post-war administration.

One of the country's main Shi'ite groups, the Iranian based Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, is boycotting the meeting in protest at the role played by the United States. Recently on television, a leading light in the group said it accepts that parliamentary democracy should rule in Iraq. I hope this is the case and that it is not another extremist movement.

Such a situation does not fill me with confidence. Any situation that allows for undue influence in the region by outsiders will add fuel to the fire and give credence to those who say the war was nothing but an act of aggression. Added to this is the fact that nobody – not one, two or any number of states – other than the United Nations is better equipped to create a post-war Iraq. I hope the British and American Administrations recognise this in the near future.

At yesterday's meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, I asked that at the EU Council of Ministers meeting in Athens today, the Minster and the Taoiseach raise the need for the United Nations to become the leading agency and to resume its rightful place in the restoration of Iraq and the distribution of humanitarian aid. The British Prime Minster, Mr. Blair, will have a major influence on the United States because of his close relationship with President Bush. The Government should leave no stone unturned in its relations with Mr. Blair and President Bush to persuade them to make way for the United Nations when arrangements for the future governance of Iraq and the delivery of humanitarian aid are being finalised.

Much of what was claimed would happen following the invasion of Iraq by the United States and Britain has not come to pass. Winning the war is one thing, but winning the peace is another. My reservations from the outset of the war related to the failure to have it sanctioned by the United Nations Security Council. That has set a precedent for other countries, such as China, Russia or some other state, in future conflicts that none of us can foresee. The sooner the authority of the United Nations is restored the better. In everything we do, multilaterally and in our bilateral contacts with Britain, the United States and others, we should use every opportunity available to us to influence the emergence of this course of events.

Mr. M. Higgins

The Minister of State's outline of the humanitarian situation is a good description of Iraq before the war. We knew how many children were malnourished – some 24% – how many people were dependent on the food programme – 16 million totally dependent and 18 million who might be food insecure – and how many children were being treated in the therapeutic feeding centres in the 63 paediatric hospitals. We also knew the consequences of bombing infrastructure.

It was on this population that people decided to use the instruments of war. That is why, without apology to anybody, I condemned this war on behalf of the Labour Party from the outset. It is hypocrisy of the greatest kind to say that the plight of the Iraqi population is being discovered after the bombing and the war. All these facts were known as a result of the sanctions. The level to which the people had been reduced was known.

It is academic to ask how much of the responsibility lay with Saddam Hussein and how much with the sanctions. The people were as they were before the bombs were released on them. There is also nothing academic about the fact that Baghdad was subjected to aerial bombardment, including one 72 hour sequence of unremitting bombardment. The consequences were known since 1991, including the protection of the infrastructure and the hospitals. No attempt was made to protect the hospitals, but there were efforts to protect the oil. Should I apologise to somebody for apportioning blame for those who visited this disaster on Iraq? Have we not an obligation in this House to sometimes speak about morality and truth and apportion blame where it properly lies?

We are responsible for that which we facilitated. When we allowed troops to pass through Shannon Airport, we linked ourselves to what happened to the people of Iraq. We cannot wash our hands of the matter and walk away. If we did so, we would be putting ourselves on the same level as the cousin who arrived with a bunch of flowers to a hospital in Kuwait to visit the little boy Ali who had been transported there.

It is time for us to be honest and to be able to say, if we are interested in the recovery of the authority of the United Nations, that it had inspectors in Iraq who were making progress but whose work was undermined. There are those who ask me if I was wrong in predicting 100,000 deaths, to which UNICEF had referred, or the 400,000 secondary deaths. I am glad so many people in Baghdad escaped and kept their lives. I had been informed that people would be kept in their houses by the Ba'ath Party, that they would be used as human shields and that a siege would be put around Baghdad, with its population of 5 million people. If half the population went to villages and relatives and are now able to return to their looted houses, I welcome that.

However, I do not take lectures from anybody in the House. In 1998 in this House, I condemned Saddam Hussein's regime for the massacre of the Kurds in Halabja. It is equally my responsibility to say that there are those who must take responsibility for this destruction visited on the people of Iraq. Is it to be seriously suggested that a war can be planned, involving the expenditure of €65 billion, and widespread destruction can be visited all over a country of 26 million people, yet the protection of a hospital cannot be anticipated? It is offensive to say there are many millions of decent Iraqis. There are 26 million people in Iraq and they are all decent people. I am not here to pass judgment on who is or is not a decent Iraqi, as the Minister of State purports to do.

There is a need for the various views on this situation to combine. I did so at the meeting today of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs when I submitted a proposal on dealing with the humanitarian situation. However, I wish to place on the record the fact that I am not using that initiative as a cover for not having any opinion on the questions the Government has avoided for the entirety of this session. There is no answer to the issue of the morality of a pre-emptive strike and international law. The Government also failed to answer the question raised by the war aims, which began with the discovery of the weapons of mass destruction and quickly became regime change.

On the question of the status of Resolution 1441. at a meeting of the Security Council on 8 November 2002, Mr. Negroponte, speaking on behalf of the United States, said there is no threat in the resolution and no mention of the question of an attack. In the House of Commons, the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, none of whose statements can be believed, stated on three occasions that there is no automaticity in Resolution 1441.

Am I supposed to ask if there is confusion as to the meaning of Resolution 1441? The Government said opinion is divided. The war would be legal, but it was unnecessary and immoral. There was a diplomatic process, but it was not allowed to conclude. To those who want to wring their hands about the situation in Iraq, the best way to have made everybody safe and to avoid what we are seeing on television was not to have proceeded with the war.

The situation today is full of confusion. The Government says it is in favour of the United Nations having a central role. There is an immense difference between a central and a lead role. The Minster of State correctly said that 16 million people were being fed by the food programme. In the three Kurdish governorships, this was done directly by the United Nations agencies. In the south-central area of the country, including Baghdad, it was done through a network of warehouses. The food went to approximately 43,000 distribution centres where people paid approximately 250 dinar – approximately ten cent – for a food parcel, comprising 2,250 kilocalories per day and 40 grams of protein. It was a survival diet.

On summing up, will the Minister of State tell me what replaced those 43,000 outlets? Who is supplying the food? The amount of food required is not twice what was ever transported, it is five times greater. The largest volume of food ever transported at a time of emergency was between Pakistan and Afghanistan in the amount of 100,000 tonnes per month. What is required now is 500,000 tonnes per month, but it is not for only three months.

Reference has been made to the oil for food programme and the new resolution which allows Kofi Annan to administer it for 45 days. He can spend the resources in the oil for food programme's account, but those will quickly become exhausted unless oil is pumped and sold. That raises the issue of who will pump the oil in Iraq and for whom. Will the oil industry be denationalised during the reconstruction? On the edge of this process we see the figure of Mr. Chalabi, a friend of Paul Wolfowitz and Richard Perle, who described him as the philosophic voice of Iraq. Mr. Perle refers to the United Nations as the old chatterbox on the banks of the Hudson which will still be bleating after the USA has finished. I do not hesitate to condemn these people. Mr. Chalabi received a 22 year sentence of hard labour in 1989 for the alleged embezzlement of Petra Bank in Jordan. Mr. Chalabi has been handing out oil contracts to his friends already. Is that liberation for Iraq? Is it on the money from the oil he sells that the people of Iraq will rely for their food?

When I spoke to the headquarters of the International Red Cross yesterday week, one of the principal workers had been shot and the organisation was not in a position to help the Al-Jazeera team about whom I had received a telephone call. The headquarters of the Al-Jazeera team had been shelled and they were feeling insecure. The Red Cross told me its members were not working at that time because of what had happened to its own worker. The question arises of where are the humanitarian corridors along which food might be delivered. As I placed my motion before the Committee on Foreign Affairs yesterday, two hospitals were functioning. Now it is claimed there are between 12 and 14, but they do not have the capacity to provide a sterile environment for people who are badly burned or wounded. These people will die of septicaemia and it is a further obscenity that Sky, CNN and Fox, who ran propaganda campaigns right through this war, display a young child being brought flowers in a Kuwaiti hospital by a member of the al-Sabbah family.

Why is there no reference in the speech we have heard of when we will receive an estimate of the number of civilians killed and injured and of the number of combatants killed and injured? We know about the British and Americans with whose families I sympathise. Nobody should have his or her heart broken by the loss of relatives in war. When will we see the figures? Do we know exactly what is needed by hospitals and, if not, when will we? The real questions concern food, medicine and the reconstruction of Iraq. We know from UNICEF, which Deputy Gay Mitchell quoted, that there has been a threefold increase in the number of children presenting with diarrhoea and all of the other illnesses which come from contaminated water.

As if that was not enough, leading academics in the United States of America went to the Pentagon twice to beg for the protection of the museum in Baghdad and to speak of the Koranic library. The matter was also raised by scholars in London. Robert Fisk wrote in The Independent yesterday:

When I caught sight of the Koranic library burning flames 100 feet high were bursting from the windows. I raced to the offices of the occupying power, the US Marines' Civil Affairs Bureau. An officer shouted to a colleague that "this guy says some biblical [sic] library is on fire". I gave the map location, the precise name, in Arabic and English. I said the smoke could be seen from three miles away and it would take only five minutes to drive there. Half an hour later, there was not an American at the scene and the flames were shooting 200 feet into the air.

I visited a museum which held 170,000 pieces – 10,000 of which could go on exhibition – dealing with a culture that is 9,000 years old. It has been a written culture for 7,000 years. One of the two books forming the basic law of humanity, The Code of Hammurabi, was held there. As I watched pictures of the new EU members at Athens, which was referred to as the cradle of democracy, I remembered that we learned of Greek philosophy through the Arabs of Spain. We learned about algebra, architecture and astronomy from them and we are not talking now of idle destruction. The heritage destroyed represented thousands of years of world history which the Pentagon could not be bothered to protect. It could not protect the museum and it could not protect the library, but it has no excuse. The Pentagon has known since 1991 what was held in all of these institutions which leads one to ask if the United States of America can ever be listened to again at UNESCO. Should we listen to it? UNESCO is sending a team to examine the damage to the cultural heritage of Iraq.

I look back now at all that has been said during this Dáil term regarding this awful and appalling war. To the war mongers who celebrate and suggest we were wrong because not enough people were killed to fulfil our predictions, I say that any loss of life for the kind of project being pursued was a disgrace and a blot on the morality of us all. We touched it because we allowed the planes to go through Shannon and we came up with half excuses to explain it. It was said that to change things would upset a long-standing arrangement and would be perceived as unfriendly. We have surrounded ourselves with half apologies and we must now insist that the United Nations be the lead agency. We must now insist that we be immediately given information through the Red Cross in accordance with the Geneva Conven tion. I want to hear the number of civilian deaths, I want to know what number of injured persons are at risk, I want to know what is needed in hospitals and I want to know what has been put in place of the 43,000 outlets that provided food to the people. I want to know that we will go to UNESCO and lend our voices to the other voices of condemnation which say that it is immoral to visit war on a broken people.

It is a disgrace to humanity in front of the whole world to sit back and allow a whole culture which affects the entire world to be destroyed because one could not be bothered to help. The assistant curator of the museum went out with four staff and begged people to send a tank or even a few soldiers with guns to protect an institution he ran on behalf of the whole world. This is not a time to avoid placing responsibility where we all know it lies. We should help the people of Iraq, but not use that as an excuse to avoid the responsibility of placing the burden precisely where we should. We should end the sanctions and help Iraq.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Ba mhaith liom mo chuid ama a roinnt leis na Teachtaí Finian McGrath, Harkin agus Gormley.

Acting Chairman (Cecilia Keaveney)

Is that agreed? Agreed.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

This eleventh hour debate on post-war Iraq must not be limited to discussion of humanitarian aid which is only one part of the highly complex post-war picture this House must deal with as a matter of urgency. The urgency is the result of the uncertainty with regard to the intentions of the United States of America towards Syria, Iran and other countries in the Middle East. When the authority of the United Nations is still in question, there is a need for UN reform now more than ever given what has happened in recent months. Despite all that, the Dáil is about to embark on an excessive holiday break once more. This war is not over, it is entering a phase of military occupation.

Tá sé de cheart ag an bpobal fios a bheith acu cá háit go díreach a sheasann an Rialtas ar an gceist mór seo. An mbeidh na Stáit Aontaithe nó na Náisiúin Aontaithe i gceannas ar an rialtas sealadach a chuirfear faoi sheol i gceann cúpla seachtain nó mí?

Níl mórán ama againn don cheist seo agus ba chomhair don Dáil bheith á bplé, ní amháin inniu ach amárach, an tseachtain seo chugainn agus an tseachtain dár gcionn más gá mar is ceist mór, millteach é a bhaineann leis an dtír seo chomh maith le gach uile tír eile ar domhan.

I gceann deich lá tarlóidh an dara cruinniú a bheidh urraithe ag na Stáit Aontaithe chun ceist an rialtais sealadach a phlé. De réir dealramh, tá Washington ag súil go mbeidh an rialtas seo faoi sheol i gceann coicís nó mar sin.

Caithfidh fios a bheith againn sa Teach cad go díreach é seasamh an Rialtais agus cad atá á rá aige leis na Stáit Aontaithe nó tíortha eile ar an gceist seo. Specifically, we need to know if the Irish Government supports a US occupation administration and an oil protective regime under a pro-Israeli former general and former director of the CIA.

Despite US and British assurances that the UN would have a leading role, it was not invited to the first meeting yesterday to discuss Iraq's future. There is no guarantee that it will be allowed to the next meeting in ten days time. This is a major cause for concern, as is the boycott of yesterday's meeting by the main majority Shi'ite organisations. At the very least the Irish Government must strongly protest at the exclusion of the UN from yesterday's meeting and must ensure it is present at the next meeting.

Likewise, cynically or arrogantly, the first reconstruction contracts worth millions have already been awarded by the US to US firms. It is deplorable that a Texas oil company formerly run by the American Vice-President stands to make tens of millions of dollars from rebuilding a country that the US Government has invaded and bombed into the stone age. This is obscene and the Irish Government must object.

The Irish Government's platitudes on the UN are not good enough. The terms "central", "vital" or "leading" are too vague and, in fact, meaningless. What we need is for the specifics of the UN role to be defined. We join with others in the House in calling on the Irish Government to state publicly and clearly that the UN must co-ordinate and oversee the humanitarian aid distribution, the interim administration and the planning and reconstruction of Iraq, and hand over these matters to democratically elected representatives of the Iraqi people as soon as possible.

The war is only just contained within the borders of Iraq. Despite the US Secretary of State's involvement, there is a risk that it will creep into surrounding countries. We must know the Irish Government's position on pre-emptive action, on the so-called axis of evil, the project for a new American century and the US national security strategy published late last year. These are some of the questions the Irish Government must answer. There are many more, but we cannot deal with them in the short period offered to us tonight. I appeal once again for the Dáil to be reconvened next week to deal with this issue properly.

Mr. Gormley

This motion is concerned primarily with humanitarian aid but colleagues in the House have raised many issues that need to be addressed. What is the Irish Government's position on this war? Does it believe we now require a UN administration as opposed to a US-British one, which is what we have? Does the Government believe that we require the arms inspectors to go back into Iraq again to verify once and for all if there are weapons of mass destruction? This is what this war was supposed to be about. We now know it was about regime change.

There has even been much sabre rattling regarding Syria. This is unacceptable. I would like to hear the Irish Government's position on Syria. Would it support an attack on that country? It should state its position now. Would it allow Shannon to be used if there were such an attack?

I wish to ask the Minister of State a direct question. He may not be able to answer it but I will ask his colleagues as well. Have cruise or patriot missiles ever been transported through Shannon? It is a simple question and I would like an answer from the Minister of State. As he knows, this has been denied repeatedly in the House. What we have been told is that no verification has taken place. It is a neither confirm nor deny situation.

It has been said that many of us made predictions that were out of line. In other words, and even Deputy Gay Mitchell said this, much of what was claimed did not come to pass. I said that America would win the war but would lose the peace and that the war would destabilise the region, lead to civilian casualties and a humanitarian crisis and create the conditions for further terrorism. Let us take these one by one.

There is instability. It is quite clear, even in Iraq. We witness it on the streets there and see the protests throughout that country in Mosul, where 12 people were killed yesterday, Najaf and Nasiriyah. We must contrast this with the propaganda we heard from Sky Television which said that tens of thousands of people were out on the streets tearing down a statue of Saddam Hussein. In fact, about 150 people were in the square where the statue was torn down. I suspect if there were a statue in Dublin of the Taoiseach or any politician, one could get 150 people to damage it. I do not take that incident as an indication of what the Iraqi people think.

I know the majority of them see the US force as an army of occupation and that is very clear. What we are seeing is a replication of our experience in Northern Ireland and what we witnessed in the West Bank. It will worsen because people will continue to take pot shots. There continues to be a problem with terrorism in Afghanistan, which has been forgotten. Some 17 US citizens lost their lives there. That problem continues.

It is extraordinary to hear Tony Blair and George Bush talking about a trust fund for the Iraqi people to let them control Iraqi oil because the American people do not even control American oil. It is controlled by a few multinationals. They are claiming to introduce socialism to Iraq to allow its people to control their oil reserves. It is an extraordinary idea and I do not believe it. We will have the creation of further terrorism. This war has been a disaster for us all.

Mr. F. McGrath

I thank the Acting Chairman for allowing me speak on the humanitarian crisis in Iraq and the urgent need for action. The beautiful country of Iraq is in turmoil for two reasons: the brutality of Saddam Hussein's regime and the occupation and bombardment of the so-called coalition forces. That is where responsibility begins and ends.

Over the past 22 days, we have seen 27 British and 61 American fatalities, 1,000 Iraqi soldiers killed in combat, many with white flags, 1,413 civilians killed – that is a conservative figure – and more than 5,103 civilians injured, many of them losing limbs.

This is the reality of war, death and destruction. Iraq has been humiliated and homes, schools and hospitals have been destroyed. We have seen anarchy and looting on the streets. Many now know about the 12 year old Iraqi boy, Ali Ismaeel Abbas, who lost his parents and both his arms. He too is seriously ill.

If this type of savagery is the best solution to the world's problems in the 21st century, it is time to think again, redouble our efforts and challenge Bush, Rumsfeld, Blair and their supporters in this country. Let us not cod ourselves by denying that we have plenty of Members in the House who support Blair and Bush but do not have the courage to tell the people. Most of the media disgraced themselves during the war in Iraq. Of course, there were a few notable exceptions but many went along with the spin of Blair and Bush. This is a serious issue for our democracy, our citizens and their right to know.

The reality of this war is that thousands of people affected are trying to rebuild their lives. We have to support them and I urge the West, the United Nations and the Arab world to assist the Iraqi people in their hour of need. They need food, water, electricity and health care. As I said earlier, 1,413 civilians are dead and over 5,103 are injured. I am very cautious about the figures. I urge the House and Government to do their best in their efforts concerning humanitarian aid.

Ms Harkin

Like many Deputies, I strongly believe the UN should have a pivotal role to play in the distribution of humanitarian relief. I agree with Deputy Ó Snodaigh that it is not enough to say this and that the role needs to be defined. Furthermore, the EU should be actively engaged in this process. This could happen in two different ways. In the longer term we may have an opportunity to progress this issue during the Irish Presidency. Although the European Commission already interacts with the UN in the area of operations and policy debate regarding humanitarian affairs, there is still scope to develop a much more effective partnership. This might come about through co-operation and collaboration on a more systemic level, rather than just on a piecemeal or ad hoc basis.

The EU has adopted a document entitled "Building an Effective Partnership with the UN in the Fields of Development and Humanitarian Affairs". This was adopted in May 2001. In February 2002, the General Affairs Council proposed to strengthen the role of the EU in international relations, particularly by channelling EU co-operation funds through the UN. A further document is due and may well fall during our Presidency. Therefore, we will have an opportunity to enhance co-operation between the EU and UN and I sincerely hope we take it.

In the shorter term we should exert pressure at EU level for a major donation of food products from EU intervention stocks. We sold Iraqis lots of expensive beef in our time. Why not give it to them now and empty EU intervention stocks? This might seem like an act of self-interest on the part of the EU and Ireland but it is very much in the interest of the people of Iraq.

The most important things now are speed of decision and speed of action. The logistics of war, which proved so effective, should now become the logistics of food aid, but sponsored and controlled by the UN. The priority is to give humanitarian aid to needy people in good time, which means right now.

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (Mr. Kitt)

I thank everybody who contributed tonight. Some very genuine remarks were made. Deputy Michael Higgins referred to my reference to the decent Iraqi people. I will stand over that comment based on my experience of having travelled to Iraq as a new Deputy a year after my election. I was fortunate enough to meet many decent people in Baghdad in particular, including many of the street artists on the back streets of the city. I would certainly not include Saddam Hussein or all those who would torture or gas their own people as decent people. This was confirmed when I saw pictures on television recently of Iraqi people trying to chisel and hammer their way into underground tunnels in the hope of finding their fellow citizens. My reference was to the vast majority of Iraqi people but there are clearly some very evil people among them, in particular Saddam Hussein and those who have ruled the country.

There is a huge humanitarian job to be done by all of us. It is difficult to find a precedent for the volume of food aid which must be supplied if large sections of the population are to avoid enormous suffering. Everybody has highlighted that tonight. It is too early to say if the international community will be able to deliver the level of aid required. However, Deputy Gay Mitchell is correct to focus on this. It is vital that we all play our part in mobilising food aid. The Government was one of the first to pledge support. The Deputy also referred to the work of Trócaire. I am a great admirer of its work, which the Government values very much and supports as actively as it can. We are willing to assist in any way we can as we monitor the crisis in the days ahead.

The humanitarian problem is still unfolding and further assistance may be required in the weeks and months ahead. The challenges facing the international community in dealing with it are formidable but they can be met. A Deputy asked a question about this. We have gained experience over the years and we have the capacity that is required. The key point is good co-ordination. Effective UN co-ordination of a civilian-led humanitarian effort must be established as soon as conditions allow. The world needs an effective United Nations and I have explained how I would like to see matters develop.

The unanimous decision of the Security Council, through Resolution 1472, authorising the Secretary General to administer the oil for food programme for 45 days and possibly longer, was very welcome and signals the way forward. I hope that the resumption of the programme will mean that basic food assistance can be provided as quickly as possible to those who are most vulnerable. This will obviously require full co-operation from the coalition forces. This is relevant to what Deputy Michael Higgins said.

Many of the previous structures have been damaged by the conflict and recent scenes of food being thrown from the backs of military trucks are an object lesson on how not to deliver humanitarian assistance. Only specialist agencies can identify those who are most in need and they are best placed to do so.

Deputy Michael Higgins asked about the number of casualties. We cannot give an estimate and we must find out the precise number of people who have lost their lives and have been injured. The Government supports all appropriate efforts being made to assess the consequences of the conflict. Such assessments are best made by objective and impartial bodies such as the International Commission of the Red Cross, which is the guardian of the Geneva Conventions. Specifically, the Fourth Geneva Convention is germane to the protection of civilians in time of conflict. The staff of the ICRC are active even now within Iraq, at significant danger to themselves, seeking to address the urgent humanitarian needs of its population.

A question was asked about the American plans for Syria. It is important to address this issue because the US has made certain assertions about Syria's policies, notably in relation to weapons of mass destruction and possible support of the former Iraqi regime. US differences with Syria give rise to concerns and we wish to see them addressed in a peaceful and constructive manner. There is no reason to believe that such issues cannot be handled through diplomatic means. The problem with Syria is not comparable to the Iraqi crisis. The latter evolved over a very long period as a result of Iraq's attacks on its neighbours and its long defiance of UN Security Council resolutions. Syria has a crucial part of play in the Middle East peace process and it is essential that it assumes its full responsibilities in this regard along with the other nations involved.