As regards the outcome of the EUASEAN ministerial meeting held in Singapore on 13-14 February, I would refer the Deputy to my reply to Question No. 80 of 25 February indicating that Ministers had a productive and wideranging exchange of views on a number of political, security, economic and other issues at the meeting. The discussions took place in an atmosphere of mutual confidence and understanding in the spirit of the previous meeting in Karlsruhe on 22-23 September 1994; and Ministers reiterated that ASEAN remains a cornerstone of the EU's dialogue with the Asian region. As the Deputy will be aware, a copy of the joint declaration adopted at the meeting has been placed in the Oireachtas Library.
In relation to Burma, the Deputy will be aware from my reply to Question No. 48 of 19 February that I participated in a lengthy and frank discussion at lunch on the situation in Burma at the EU-ASEAN meeting. This exchange of views is acknowledged in the joint declaration. The concerns of European Ministers regarding the situation in Burma were conveyed to the ASEAN side in great detail.
Prior to this discussion, which lasted for some two hours, the Presidency reiterated, in the formal EU statement, the concern of the European Union in relation to the continuing human rights violations in Burma. The EU called upon the SLORC immediately and unconditionally to release all political prisoners and to embark upon a process of national reconciliation and democratic reform, respecting the aspirations of the Burmese people as expressed in the elections of May 1990. To this end, the EU also called upon the SLORC to enter into a meaningful dialogue with pro-democracy groups in general and with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in particular as well as with representatives of various ethnic groups.
In relation to the EU Troika meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen, I can confirm that almost the entire meeting was given over to an exchange of views on human rights issues. This allowed for a broad discussion on areas of immediate importance to the EU including the question of a resolution on China at the forthcoming session on the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva.
In addition, the EU side expressed its regret that China had not agreed to a new date for an EU-China meeting within the framework of the Human Rights dialogue initiated in 1995 and highlighted European interest in resuming such a dialogue. The EU also repeated its call that China become party to the UN Covenant on civil and political rights as well as that on economic, social and cultural rights.
We sought the release of political prisoners in need of medical treatment and the agreement of China to facilitate prison visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
