Vol. 488 No. 7
95 Mr. Spring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the interventions, if any, he or his EU colleagues have made in view of the reporting of further arrests and ill-treatment of the Ogoni people by the Nigerian authorities. [7023/98]
The Government continues to avail of every appropriate opportunity to support an early return to democracy and full respect for human rights and the rule of law in Nigeria. I have outlined the course of action being taken by the Government and our EU partners to achieve these objectives in my respective replies to Questions Nos. 21, 42, 61 and 76 of 19 March. Our approach follows the relevant decision of the EU Council of Development Ministers on 28 November 1997 and is particularly focused on the continued plight of Ogoni and other political prisoners and the unacceptable lack of due process in their cases.
Last Friday, 20 March, the Government and our European partners expressed our deep concern about human rights, political detainees and the process of democratisation in Nigeria in a declaration which marked the visit of His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, to that country. In so doing, we called on the Nigerian authorities to take immediate steps to ensure the final stages of democratic transition are conducted in a manner which respects the rule of law and the Nigerian people's right to choose their own government and leaders in a free and unfettered way. The Union also made its concerns known directly to the Vatican in advance of the Pope's visit. These included recent actions by the security forces in Ogoniland, the whereabouts and health of Mr. Batom Mitee, brother of the Acting President of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, and the fact that 20 further Ogonis are awaiting trail. As part of his ongoing monitoring of the situation in Nigeria, the Irish Ambassador in Lagos recently met and was briefed by the President of the Niger Delta Human and Environment Rescue Organisation on the human rights and environmental justice situation in Ogoniland and the Niger Delta.
The Government will continue to support strongly, including at the forthcoming 54th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, concerted international action which will lead to an early return to democracy and full respect for human rights and the rule of law in Nigeria.
