Vol. 459 No. 5
4 Mr. R. Burke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the action, if any, being taken and the guarantees, if any, that can be put in place by the international community for the voluntary and organised repatriation of the more than two million refugees back to Rwanda; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18337/95]
12 Mr. M. Kitt asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the situation for Rwandan refugees who face an uncertain future; if the international community is addressing the issues inside Rwanda; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17659/95]
35 Mr. Callely asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the way in which Ireland's contribution of £4 million for emergency relief in Burundi, Rwanda and neighbouring States was spent; the current situation in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17600/95]
45 Mr. Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if he intends to support the renewal of the mandate of the UN's peacekeeping force in Rwanda in view of the imminent decision on this matter and in view of the bloodshed that could ensue in the event of a UN withdrawal. [18315/95]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 4, 12, 35 and 45 together.
The Government considers that the voluntary and organised repatriation of the more than two million Rwandan refugees from Zaire, Tanzania and Burundi is a central aspect of a solution to the political and humanitarian crisis in the Great Lakes Region.
In the last three months, intensive diplomatic efforts have been under way to establish a regional political framework to promote peace and stability and to encourage a large scale, voluntary return of refugees. These efforts have involved representatives of the Secretary General of the United Nations, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Mrs. Ogata, the regional Governments and former US President Jimmy Carter. These efforts have enhanced the prospects for a long-term settlement of the crisis. The Government welcome the Carter initiative and the resulting Cairo Declaration of November 30 in which all regional leaders, including President Mobutu of Zaire, committed themselves, inter alia, to working together for accelerated voluntary return of refugees. It is our hope that the Cairo Declaration, and the follow-up Summit planned for early next year, will prove to be a catalyst for long-term peace and stability in the region.
Since September the rate of return of refugees to Rwanda has remained low. From our ongoing contacts with UNHCR and Irish aid agencies, I understand that within the camps in Zaire there is still uncertainty as to the intentions of the Zairian authorities. There is a strong sense that more decisive action is needed against intimidators in the camps who are actively discouraging ordinary refugees from returning home.
Within Rwanda itself, plans are in place to receive greater numbers of returning refugees. The plans have been agreed by the Government of Rwanda in close co-operation with the UNHCR and international aid agencies. The objective is to provide essential rations to between 6,000 and 8,000 returning refugees per day as they transit to their home communes. The resettlement of Rwandan refugees in their communes will be closely monitored by the UN Human Rights Field Operation for Rwanda who have an essential role in ensuring that the communal authorities act fairly and guarantee the rights of returning refugees.
The Government does not underestimate the challenge which the large scale return of refugees will pose at a social level within Rwanda — not least in relation to property issues. It has been estimated that between one and two million Rwandan people could be criminally implicated in last year's genocide of close to one million people. There are major implications both socially and legally to this level of criminality. The prisons of Rwanda are unacceptably overcrowded and there is a serious risk of revenge killings which would further postpone any prospect of national reconciliation.
The Government remains committed to doing everything possible, both bilaterally and in cooperation with EU partners and the UN, to help overcome such challenges and to encourage national reconciliation and reconstruction in Rwanda. Our commitment reflects the continuing concern of the Irish people that Rwanda be an ongoing political and humanitarian priority. That concern was further expressed by President Robinson during her visit to Rwanda from 9 to 13 October when she was accompanied by the Minister of State with responsibility for development cooperation at my Department, Deputy Burton. The Government will continue to voice that concern and it is our intention to make action on Rwanda and the Great Lakes Region an ongoing priority as part of our EU Troika and Presidency responsibilities during 1996.
Ireland, with its EU partners, supports the continuation of the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda — UNAMIR — which is due to expire on 8 December. We consider UNAMIR to be an important stabilising factor and objective presence in Rwanda. At a practical level, UNAMIR provides significant technical and logistical support to the international aid effort in Rwanda.
Against this background Ireland supported an EU demarche to the UN Deputy Secretary General for Peace-keeping Operations, Mr. M. Kittani, which was made in New York on 1 December. Bilaterally, Ireland also made its own demarche to the Rwandan Government through diplomatic channels earlier this week. In so doing, we strongly emphasised the importance of extending the UNAMIR mandate and sought the cooperation of the Rwandan Government accordingly.
The Government hope for a positive outcome to the ongoing negotiations on the extension of the UNAMIR mandate. The negotiations will probably not be concluded before the end of this week.
Since the beginning of the crisis in Rwanda and in the region a total of £6.9 million has been allocated by the Irish Government for emergency relief and rehabilitation efforts. The objective of this assistance has been to support international efforts to meet emergency needs and to restore civic institutions and the rule of law in Rwanda. This assistance has been channelled through the Irish aid agencies Concern, Trócaire, GOAL and Refugee Trust, to UN agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and directly to Rwandan Ministries. A detailed breakdown of each grant has been made available to the House and for inclusion in the Dáil records.
Of the total allocation of £6.9 million, £4.8 million has been spent on emergency humanitarian assistance for refugees and displaced persons including a grant of £350,000 to ease the humanitarian crisis in Rwanda's prisons. A further £1.4 million has been spent bilaterally on basic rehabilitation projects aimed at restoring national and local administrations which have been devastated by genocide and war. Grants have been made for communal police training as well as for six Rwandan Ministries — including the Ministry of Justice and the Interior. Grants totalling £730,000 have been made to the International Tribunal, the UN Human Rights Field Operation and for the recent Genocide Summit in Kigali which Ireland co-sponsored with the US Government.
Is it the Tánaiste's understanding that, as President Mobutu has associated himself with the Cairo Declaration, the threatened forced repatriation of the refugees will now not take place? If not, will the Tánaiste take action at EU level to ensure that this threatened repatriation does not proceed?
President Mobutu's co-operation is significant and I hope it has the effect Deputy Burke desires. The forced expulsion of refugees from Zaire resulted in the return of 15,000 Rwandans to their own country. Numerous demarches were issued by the European Union and Zaire suspended its actions. At that time, the Zairian authorities stated they would recommence forced repatriations towards the end of 1995 if substantial progress was not made in relation to voluntary repatriation. Extensive diplomatic efforts have been made in the region, and at international level, to establish a regional political framework to promote peace and stability and to encourage a large scale voluntary return of refugees. These efforts have involved the representative of the UN Secretary General and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. We will continue to monitor the situation.
We understand, from our mission in Geneva, that the UNHCR has not received any reports that Zaire intends to expel a large number of refugees. Internal debate is taking place at Kinshasa between President Mobutu and his Ministers on the question of the deadline. We will continue with the international effort to ensure there is no forced repatriation and with efforts to assist in building a regional political framework that will promote peace and stability.
What action is being taken to ensure that refugees are successfully assimilated into Rwandan society on their return home? Their safety is obviously fundamental. What action is being taken at EU level to establish a force to ensure their safety on their return? A proper judicial system is essential. What steps are being taken by the international agencies, the EU and the UN, to introduce such a system?
The EU and the UN are actively involved in establishing respect for human rights and a proper judicial system. Financial and other assistance has been and will continue to be given. We have had the benefit of information from the UN/EU human rights mission in Rwanda on what happened to refugees who returned home. Of 30,000 who returned in October 1995, 60 were arrested and accused of genocide. After some days 14 of them were released. The view is widely held that those who participated in the genocide living outside Rwanda will be slow to return voluntarily. We hope that the majority of refugees who are in a position to return home will do so.
It is essential that the tribunal makes progress. What action is the Minister taking at EU or UN level on the operation of the tribunal in Rwanda?
The Deputy is aware that we continue to support the work of the international tribunal and this month we allocated a second grant of £100,000 for it. We have urged greater international support for the tribunal. It is expected that it will begin full proceedings in the new year with a plenary session scheduled to take place in Arusha, Tanzania between 8 and 12 January. This is the result of a recent demarche by the European Union and the UN seeking to expedite the proceedings of the tribunal. The hearing of genocide cases will be a welcome important contribution to the process of national reconciliation in Rwanda.
Is the Minister aware of the serious criticisms made by the NGOs that the international community seems to have forgotten the problems in Rwanda particularly the fact that those involved in genocide were not brought to trial and that thousands of prisoners are held in inhumane conditions? The imposition of harsh policies by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank is adding to the economic and social hardship experienced there particularly with the collapse of coffee prices.
The Deputy is extending the subject matter of the question.
I am aware of the comments made by the NGOs. Yesterday 38 NGOs were expelled from Rwanda. Obviously that was related to the criticisms made. We will take note of the ongoing work of the NGOs. The Irish NGOs did not form part of the expulsions yesterday. We are doing everything to expedite the tribunal and ensure that those who participated in genocide are brought to justice. I am not in a position to comment on coffee prices.
Will the Minister take the matter up with the IMF?
That is not on my schedule at present.
