I propose to take Questions Nos. 40, 150, 153 and 169 together.
As I have stated on a number of occasions in the House, human rights is a priority issue for this Government and a central component of our foreign policy. We believe that the international community has an obligation to act when it has concerns and that these concerns should be pursued whenever possible in a constructive spirit of co-operation and dialogue, conscious of the responsibility which devolves on all Governments to promote and protect human rights.
The Government is actively pursuing its human rights objectives in a wide range of international fora, both on a national basis and in conjunction with our EU partners, for example, at the Third Committee of the United Nations General Assembly which is currently taking place in New York. In its capacity this year as chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, Ireland has sought to promote discussion of human rights issues throughout the world. At the regional level, Ireland will avail of the opportunity provided by its forthcoming chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to focus attention on the human rights role of that institution.
However, despite the efforts of the international community in international and regional fora such as those I have mentioned, it has to be acknowledged that the systems in place for preventing and tackling flagrant human rights abuses – and for preventing conflicts and humanitarian crises – are not proving adequate. Reasons for this range from the failure of States to ratify relevant international instruments, both human rights and humanitarian law treaties, to a lack of resources and even political will to focus on these problems.
Consequently, as I have already indicated in my response to an earlier question on the prevention of humanitarian disasters, there is a developing debate on how the international community can react most effectively to crisis situations and humanitarian disasters, such as those in East Timor, Kosovo and in a series of conflict situations in Africa.
This debate is focusing on the need for clarification of the principles and the establishment of agreed criteria for external intervention. In this regard, there is an evident need to reconcile the requirements of international human rights provisions with other principles such as national sovereignty or non-intervention, as established by the UN Charter. Ireland is actively involved in this debate and is currently engaged in discussions with like-minded countries, notably in a group known as the Human Security Network. This initiative of the Canadian and Norwegian Governments is aimed at establishing the concept of human security as a central element in the international community's approach to situations of conflict. I attended the most recent meeting of this group which took place in New York on 24 September last.
On another front, the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, has recently spoken of the need to build support for the principle that massive and systematic violations of human rights should not be allowed to stand, wherever they may occur. Furthermore, the international community should progress from a culture of reaction to one of prevention. Ireland strongly supports these efforts of the UN Secretary General to develop better prevention strategies and to encourage a strong sense of deterrence.