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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 28 Nov 2000

Vol. 526 No. 6

Written Answers. - Spread of Democracy.

Ruairí Quinn

Ceist:

93 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the steps that have been taken to meet the commitment given in the review of An Action Programme for the Millennium to support the spread of democracy, and peaceful political accommodation of the right to self-determination of peoples whose territories have been annexed in the past without their consent by larger neighbours; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27509/00]

Encouragement of the spread of democracy and protection of the right to self-determination are priority objectives of Irish foreign policy. We are working actively in those international fora where we are members – notably the United Nations, the EU, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe and the Council of Europe to support initiatives in support of democracy.

Earlier this year, Ireland along with a number of other countries participated in the "Community of Democracies" initiative, intended to bring together the world's democracies in order to consider ways to improve international efforts aimed at strengthening democracy. This objective will be furthered by establishing a network for exchanging experiences, identifying best practices and formulating an agenda for international co-operation. The Tánaiste represented Ireland at the "Towards a Community of Democracies" Conference held in Warsaw in June of this year. It is not intended that the initiative should give rise to the creation of a new international body, instead it is hoped it will sustain a strong international lobby in favour of democracy. It is envisaged that further conferences will be held every three or four years and that there might also be follow-up activity at regional level.

The right of peoples to self-determination is a critical prerequisite for the establishment of a culture of human rights throughout the world. This right is enshrined in the charter of the United Nations and re-iterated in the international covenants on human rights. Ireland has supported resolutions calling for the realisation of the right of peoples to self-determination at the 54th and 55th sessions of the UN General Assembly. These resolutions were adopted by consensus.

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