Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 29 Sep 1999

Vol. 508 No. 1

Written Answers. - Humanitarian Aid.

Alan Shatter

Ceist:

89 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the aid to date provided by this State to Turkey to meet the needs of the Turkish people arising from the August earthquake; the initiatives, if any, taken at European Union level to provide assistance to Turkey to date; and the assistance provided and proposed to be provided in the coming weeks and months. [17466/99]

Liz McManus

Ceist:

130 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the financial aid or other assistance Ireland has provided or intends to provide to help the people of Turkey and Greece recover from the effects of the recent earthquakes. [17956/99]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Andrews):

I propose to take Questions Nos. 89 and 130 together.

The devastating earthquake which hit the Marmara region of Turkey on August 17th has left over 15,000 dead and thousands more injured. The disaster resulted in an immediate and generous response from the international community. In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake, the Turkish Government declared a state of emergency for the region and requested international assistance. Ireland was among the first countries to respond to the humanitarian needs of the people affected by the earthquake making an initial grant of IR£200,000 to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent to enable them to purchase essential supplies such as food, water and any available medicines locally. As the scale of the devastation became clearer and more information on the needs of the victims became available, the Government announced a further grant of £500,000 to provide for the survivors of the earthquake.

In response to an appeal by the Turkish Government for various essential items which were in short supply, part of the second grant was used to purchase essential medical and emergency supplies in Ireland. In total two shipments of medical supplies, antibiotics and water purification tablets weighing over 4 metric tonnes were flown to Istanbul by Aer Lingus and Turkish Airlines free of charge.

Allocations were also channeled through the United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs to assist them in their role of co-ordinating the relief effort and through the United Nations Children's Fund. UNICEF is providing sanitation and shelters in the camps which have been set up to house the homeless.

During the course of the United Nations General Assembly, the Minister for Foreign Affairs met with Foreign Minister Cem of Turkey and discussed further ways in which Ireland could be of assistance. The European Union also responded to the disaster, with the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO) announcing an initial grant of 2 million euros in emergency humanitarian assistance just hours after the earthquake. A further grant of 2 million euros was made available as needs became clearer. This is part of a planned 30 million euro package of assistance. ECHO is focusing on addressing the needs of the persons made homeless by the disaster, providing weather resistant shelter and ensuring basic medical care.

With regard to the immediate and long-term reconstruction effort in Turkey, this is being funded on a multilateral basis. The European Commission is proceeding with plans for new and substantial assistance for rehabilitation and reconstruction to come from European Investment Bank lending as well as macro-financial assistance and MEDA II (Mediterranean Assistance Development Programme) funds. It is proposed that loans of up to 600 million euros be provided to Turkey to assist in the reconstruction process. In addition, 150 million euros earmarked as regional aid for Turkey, will be allocated to assist in the reconstruction effort.

In relation to the recent earthquake in Greece, the government of Greece did not request any international financial assistance in the aftermath of the earthquake given their own relatively developed response capability. Specialist search and rescue teams were dispatched from countries experienced in dealing with such emergencies.