Bernard J. Durkan
Question:284 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the decisions or proposals he has made at UN or EU level to counter trade in human beings and slavery; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7434/03]
Written Answers - Human Rights Abuses.
The Government is committed to the active promotion of full observance of universal human rights standards and opposes and seeks the elimination of all contemporary forms of slavery. Contemporary forms of slavery include practices such as bonded labour, the sale of children, child prostitution, child pornography and trafficking in persons. The Government is also opposed to all acts and practices which degrade or exploit human beings.
Through its participation at international fora such as the UN General Assembly, the UN Commission on Human Rights, the Council of Europe and the OSCE, Ireland raises its concerns in tandem with like-minded countries regarding these issues.
For example, at the 58th session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, Ireland co-spon sored a number of resolutions on these issues, including that on trafficking in women and girls.
The UN body with responsibility for the study of all aspects of slavery is the working group on contemporary forms of slavery. Ireland has provided financial assistance to the UN voluntary trust fund on contemporary forms of slavery with the purpose of assisting involved non-governmental organisations to participate in the working group and to provide assistance to individual victims of such practices.
The reality of trafficking as an affront to human dignity and, as a threat to security and stability, was recognised by Ireland and our EU partners in a statement to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, OSCE, human dimension implementation meeting held in Warsaw from 9 to 19 September last.
More recently at the OSCE tenth Ministerial Council held in Porto from 6 to 7 December last, where Ministers adopted a declaration on trafficking in human beings, my colleague the Minister for Rural, Community and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív, in a statement, condemned trafficking as a modern form of slavery.
I welcome the decision of the incoming Dutch chair to make trafficking in all its forms the focal theme for next year's economic forum of the OSCE.
The importance of addressing trafficking in persons has been recognised by Ireland and our EU partners. Article 5 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights provides that no one should be held in slavery or be required to perform forced or compulsory labour. It also prohibits trafficking in human beings.
Ireland, along with all other EU member states and the European Commission has signed the UN Convention on Transnational Organised Crime and its two accompanying protocols on prevention, suppression and punishment of trafficking in persons, especially women and children, and smuggling of migrants by land, air or sea. The protocol on trafficking not only provides for measures to suppress trafficking but also for measures to protect the victims of trafficking.
The persistence of contemporary forms of slavery, a most fundamental abuse of human rights, presents a challenge to all governments. The Irish Government will continue to highlight and address this issue at every appropriate opportunity.