Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 31 Oct 1996

Vol. 470 No. 8

Written Answers. - Human Rights Abuses in Tibet.

Seán Haughey

Question:

16 Mr. Haughey asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs whether the Government supports the Chinese strike-hard campaign which has resulted in the arbitrary detention and disappearance of at least ten dissidents, the closure of several monasteries, mosques and religious schools in Tibet and the large scale, arbitrary arrest of Tibetan splittists, including several monks; and the action, if any, which is being taken by the Government during its Presidency of the EU to ensure the correction of such abuses. [20063/96]

Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Spring)

The stated aim of the "strike hard campaign", instituted by the Chinese Government in April 1996, is to combat criminality and corruption. It is a nationwide campaign and does not appear to be aimed specifically at the suppression of political dissent or at specific areas such as Tibet. It has resulted in the arrest and conviction of large numbers of people on charges under China's criminal code and there is concern about the duration and intensity of the campaign and its potentially harmful impact on the efforts to promote the rule of law throughout China.

The Government is concerned about the human rights situation in China, including Tibet, and in particular the treatment of political dissidents and the fate of the Panchen Lama. On 23 September 1996, I led the EU ministerial Troika at a meeting in New York with the Chinese Vice-Premier and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Qian Qichen. I availed of this opportunity to pursue the question of human rights in the People's Republic of China, which I have raised consistently in previous meetings with the Vice-Premier. The EU has urged China to implement legislation and other positive measures in the human rights field, particularly the early accession to and ratification of the international covenants on civil and political rights and on economic, social and cultural rights. The Irish Presidency is pursuing these concerns actively.