asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason Ireland decided not to support the United Nations resolution calling for mandatory sanctions against the apartheid regime of the Republic of South Africa; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Sanctions Against South Africa.
41.
The resolution on "Comprehensive and Mandatory Sanctions against the Racist Regime of South Africa", to which I take Deputy Quinn to refer, was one of a series of eleven resolutions on apartheid considered at this year's session of the United Nations General Assembly. It was adopted on 5 December 1988 by 123 votes to 12 with 19 abstentions, including Ireland.
Ireland repeated its abstention vote on this resolution because it called for comprehensive mandatory sanctions, describing such sanctions as "the most appropriate, effective and peaceful means to bring apartheid to an end". The Government do not share this view. The resolution also contained a number of other elements with which we could not agree, in particular, it singled out Japan, in our view invidiously, and it called for accession to the International Convention against Apartheid in Sports which raises constitutional difficulties for us.
The Irish representative spoke in the debate on apartheid in the General Assembly on 30 November and delivered an explanation of vote following the voting process on 5 December. Both the statement and explanation of vote set out clearly our belief that the right policy for the international community is one of steady and graduated pressure for change through carefully chosen, selective, graduated sanctions. Such sanctions, naturally, should be mandatory — that is, imposed by the United Nations Security Council — and implemented fully by the entire international community. Such action by the security council would have the full support of Ireland.
I am arranging to have copies of the resolution as well as of the interventions by Ireland placed in the Dáil Library.