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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 6 May 1998

Vol. 490 No. 5

Written Answers. - IMF Loans.

Joe Higgins

Ceist:

102 Mr. Higgins (Dublin West) asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will give an assurance that Irish taxpayers' money, in the form of IMF loans to Indonesia, will be linked to an improvement in the human rights situation in Indonesia and East Timor and will also be linked to an improvement in the horrific labour conditions in Indonesia. [10471/98]

The Deputy will be aware of the deep concern of the Government in regard to the human rights situations in Indonesia and East Timor. We are actively seeking means of engaging the Indonesian Government in dialogue, urging commitments to concrete action that will lead to real improvements in those situations.

At the recent session of the Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, Ireland supported a chairman's statement on human rights in East Timor which was negotiated with the Government of Indonesia and in which the Indonesians made a number of substantive commitments to improve the human rights situation. Foremost among the measures agreed to were:

The invitation to the UN special working group on arbitrary detention to visit East Timor and to submit a report of its findings to the next session of the Commission.

An undertaking to ratify the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

Access for a programme officer to East Timor and a report from the Secretary General of the UN to the next session of the commission on the human rights situation in East Timor.

This Government also supports the appointment of a special envoy to East Timor by the UN Secretary General, the establishment of regular dialogue involving the Secretary General and the Portuguese and Indonesian Foreign Ministers and the intra-Timorese dialogue.

With regard to the role of the IMF, I am informed that, while specific humanitarian or human rights criteria are not set as conditions for its support to its member countries, the IMF, within its mandate, seeks to promote and maintain high levels of employment and real income, consistent with the level of sustainable growth. To this end, IMF policy advice has emphasised the need for labour policies aimed at ensuring competitive and flexible wages, and at removing rigidities, while adhering to ILO principles. Such policies can contribute to improvements in labour productivity and hence sustainable increases in real wages as well as a rise in labour standards.

I am further informed that IMF-supported programmes try to integrate socially oriented measures with macroeconomic and structural adjustments that are essential to re-establish sustained growth, which is the most powerful means of increasing employment and reducing and eventually eradicating poverty.
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