This has come up in engagements with the Chinese ambassador here. Obviously we have raised this, and I outlined a series of instances where we have raised it, in international fora, whether at the UN Human Rights Council or other fora. The term "genocide" has a particular meaning in international law, and recognition of events defined as genocide involves an analysis of facts and law. Ireland follows the practice of recognising genocide where this has been established by a judgment of an international court where t…

We know some of what is happening, and I have been very critical of it, as has the Dáil and Seanad. A very strong motion was tabled by Senator McDowell and others, which was supported by all parties, a number of months ago. Ireland has not been quiet on this issue. We have raised it. With regard to the issue of how we define it legally, certainly the advice I have from the Department is that we do not have sufficient legal certainty to be able to categorise it as genocide. I am not going to use emotive language for…

As the civil war in Syria enters its 11th year, humanitarian needs remain extremely high. Across Syria, 13.4 million people need humanitarian assistance, including almost 3 million people in the north-west of the country, which is the population served by this crossing. On the Security Council, Ireland acts with Norway as co-penholder on the Syrian humanitarian file. In this role, we have strongly advocated for humanitarian aid to be able to reach all of the people who need it. We are undertaking extensive engageme…

The reason this is so complicated is that north-west area is essentially Idlib province. The strategy within Syria in terms of the conflict there has essentially been to push the resistance and opposition to the regime in Syria into the north-west. Some of those who support the Assad regime see aid flowing in a structured way from Turkey into north-west Syria essentially as feeding the resistance and prolonging the war and so the politics and the military decisions around aid. Some of them would also accuse that cr…

At present, there is not agreement that it will be extended. We are working on that and speaking to the key actors. Clearly, Russia is an absolutely key actor here, as is Turkey, as is Iran. Of course, some of these countries are not on the Security Council but are influential over countries that are. The reason I am so exercised about this is that if one speaks to the NGOs that are providing daily humanitarian assistance, in some cases into tented villages or makeshift homes, one will learn that they are desperate…

The Government views the terrible events which saw the deaths of a large number of the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire as a tragedy. We have previously expressed deepest sympathy for the enormous suffering of the Armenian people during this period and I do so again here this evening. The Government has not taken a stance on whether those terrible events should be described as a genocide because we believe we are not in a position to adjudicate on this matter. To reach a conclusion that any events amount t…

We regularly review this issue. It might be helpful to outline why it is a difficult question to answer. In December 1948, the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide described genocide as carrying out acts intended "to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group". The dispute about whether these events were genocide centres on the question of premeditation - on the degree to which the killings were orchestrated. Some histories believe that in this c…

My Department examines this question on a regular basis. What we see from the available data is that there continues to be no consensus and little clarity on this. The tragedy of the Armenian people was recognised as genocide by parliaments of over 20 countries, including 16 EU member state legislatures and by the European Parliament but recognition at the level of government amounts to a much smaller number. As I mentioned in my reply, the Department's briefing notes on this are simply about trying to be consisten…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 58 and 73 together. The position of the Government with respect to the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland has been clear and consistent for a number of years now. The Stormont House Agreement framework was reached collectively by both Governments and the political parties after intensive negotiations. To be completely accurate, the UUP did not support it but the other parties did. It is vital that we make progress on this for the victims and families who have been waiting for so…

On Ballymurphy, the significance of the report that was released today should not be underestimated. This happened over a three-day period almost five decades ago. The families involved are representative of many families across Northern Ireland from different backgrounds and communities who have been tortured for decades because they have not been believed, understood or listened to and they have not managed to establish the truth. In order for reconciliation to be as powerful as it needs to be in the context of N…

For legacy to work, the approach must be built on consensus. That is the real challenge here for politicians to deliver. We must work closely with the British Government and work with all parties in Northern Ireland, so that we can bring all the communities in Northern Ireland with us. If we are going to establish the truth, people will have to come forward and speak about things which they may not have spoken about for decades. We will have to ensure PSNI files are made available. We will have to do our part on th…

I thank Deputy Durkan for raising this important issue this evening. Today marks the tenth anniversary of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, sometimes known as the Istanbul Convention. It is a timely reminder of the impact of Covid-19, particularly regarding the increasing incidences of domestic violence against women during the pandemic. As Deputy Durkan is aware, women are to the fore in providing healthcare and support for those affected by …

I hope it is clear from this question session that the protection of human rights is central to Irish foreign policy. The challenge, of course, is in being effective and not just saying the right things but actually being an agent for change in countries that are often a long way from here and from Europe. That is the real challenge. We must work out how to use Ireland's position within the European Union, the UN and the Security Council, as well as the bilateral relationships we have with both big and small countr…

First, I restate my profound concern at the overall human rights situation in Israel and Palestine. I am aware of the recent report from Human Rights Watch. As I stated earlier, the report is a lengthy and complex document and it is being reviewed by officials in my Department. Human Rights Watch is a respected NGO, and I value the role it and other civil society organisations referred to by Deputies, such as B'Tselem and Yesh Din, play. There is no doubt that Israel's actions have violated Palestinian human rights…

Finally, our approach is rooted in the illegality of Israel’s occupation and the right of Palestinians to self-determination. Restrictions imposed on Palestinians undermine the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, a right which is at the heart of the two-state solution

We are not complicit in this ethnic cleansing. I do not accept those terms, but we are not. We are standing up and speaking out against what is happening. We are and have been all day-----

The Deputy talks about actions-----

The Deputy must understand how sanctions work. Ireland does not have the legal capacity to introduce sanctions. We have had this debate repeatedly regarding the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018. We cannot legally do that. The EU has competence in trade issues, and it is not up to Ireland to make its own decisions. I am not going to do something which is not legally sound in response to this issue. What I will do is try to build strong consensus where it matters and where that can be the…

That is what I am interested in.

The Deputy does not want to hear this, but I am interested in trying to use Ireland's privileged position on the UN Security Council, as we have been doing this evening, to try to get a debate tomorrow to ensure we can raise our concerns where it matters and where we are likely to get a real dividend, initially in respect of-----