Minister Andrews speaks on famine in North Korea

Speaking in the Seanad on the subject of famine in North Korea, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr David Andrews, T.D., has said that "the people of North Korea must not be held responsible for the sins of their government". He insisted that, notwithstanding the nature of the regime in North Korea and its human rights record, "it behoves us all in today's interdependent world to ensure that the global economy provides adequate food security for the entire population. Ireland will continue to work with the rest of the international community to play our full part in preventing further crises in North Korea. The memory of the suffering of our own people 150 years ago will allow us to do no less".

Mr Andrews drew comparisons between the current situation in North Korea and Ireland's experience of famine 150 years ago. "Because of our own painful and relatively recent experience with famine, we are in a better position than most to develop an honourable and honest role to both comment on, and to lead the campaign against, starvation and want in our late-twentieth century world, especially as this is manifest in North Korea". He said that "a lack of resources is no reason why anyone should perish from famine in the late-twentieth century. I regard humanitarian concerns as being central to Irish life and politics. We have always felt a strong solidarity with the peoples of other countries who are suffering similar catastrophes or disasters - whether natural or man-made".

Mr Andrews acknowledged that the intrinsic root of the problem has been North Korea's stubborn inability as a society to adapt itself to the economic and technological realities of the modern world. Not only has this policy brought economic ruin to the entire country but it has failed the most basic self-sufficiency requirement of all - which is the ability to feed one's own people".Top