Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 May 2013
49. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to the recent decision by the UN Security Council to adopt Resolution 2099, which extends the peacekeeping mandate in Western Sahara MINURSO for one more year and if he believes there should be a human rights monitoring and a reporting element for MINURSO.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23216/13]
View answerI welcome the extension of the mandate of the MINURSO Mission in Western Sahara, in the context of the key role being played by the UN in the efforts to bring about political dialogue between Morocco and the Polisario in Western Sahara. We have consistently supported for some time the proposal that there should be a specific human rights monitoring and reporting element forming part of the MINURSO mandate. This would allow MINURSO to report on the human rights situation not only within Western Sahara itself but also within the refugee camps situated in Tindouf, Algeria. I therefore very much welcomed the fact that, in his most recent report to the Security Council on the mission, Secretary-General Ban drew attention to the need for “independent, impartial, comprehensive and sustained monitoring of the human rights situations in both Western Sahara and the [refugee] camps”.
I understand that Secretary General Ban’s report and recommendations were extensively discussed within the Security Council prior to the adoption of Resolution 2099 last month which extended MINURSO’s mandate for a further 12 months. I regret that it did not prove possible on this occasion for the members of Security Council to agree to include a specific human rights monitoring element within the MINURSO mandate, in response to the Secretary General’s clear encouragement for such a provision. I would hope that renewed consideration can be given to the inclusion of such a human rights component when the MINURSO mandate next comes up for renewal.
