| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Mr. Hoon: The right hon. and learned Gentleman is a subtle and sophisticated man, and I am sorry that he resorts to such convoluted reasoning to justify his present position. I used the expression "force for good" and we are proud of our forces and the work that they have done, and continue to do, in Sierra Leone. As regards the right hon. and learned Gentleman's suggestion that I should admit that they have been used as combat forces, we have never had any reservations about that fact. We have made it clear, and my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has said repeatedly, that if those forces were attacked they would defend themselves and the mission that took them to Sierra Leone--the protection of the airport. That is precisely what happened in the early hours of last Wednesday morning. They were attacked and they responded robustly and extremely effectively. There has never been any doubt about that, but we have made it clear that British forces would not become combat troops on behalf of either the Government of Sierra Leone or the United Nations. That has been absolutely consistent throughout and it remains the case today. We are supporting the Government of Sierra Leone and the UN mission by ensuring that the Government of Sierra Leone--consistent with the Lome agreement--have access to properly trained, properly disciplined forces, which they can use to bring Sierra Leone under their effective control.
Mr. David Winnick (Walsall, North): Has my right hon. Friend seen the photograph in a British newspaper of a 14-month-old child, whose hand was cut off six months ago? Is not that as good an illustration as any of the crimes and atrocities that are taking place in Sierra Leone? Have we learned the lessons of the past--that any kind of coalition with the rebel forces in that country should be totally unacceptable, that there can be no stability until the rebels are militarily defeated and, therefore, that an international force is necessary? We should be proud of the role that British troops are playing.
Mr. Hoon: I thank my hon. Friend for his observations. Yes, I have seen the photograph to which he refers, and many others like it. An appalling aspect of what has taken place in Sierra Leone is that it is possible that that child lost an arm as a result of the activities of child soldiers on the other side who perhaps are only a few years older. That is why it is necessary that Sierra Leone should return to peace and stability and why it is important that we should assist its democratically elected Government to achieve what was set out in the Lome agreement in respect of training and equipping their forces to do the job that is clearly necessary to bring greater peace and
stability to that country--otherwise we could face the recurrence of such violence, and see more of the appalling pictures to which my hon. Friend refers.
Mr. Tom King (Bridgwater): Is it not our duty not merely to pay tribute in the House to the skill at arms of our forces--the Paras and 42 Commando--but to ensure that their achievement is lasting so that they do not have to go back and do it again? I have raised this matter previously with the Secretary of State: what efforts are Her Majesty's Government making to ensure that the RUF is distinctly isolated and not getting any help from over the borders that might help to sustain its activities?
On the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr. Duncan Smith), although I entirely accept that it is right to support the Sierra Leone army and ensure that it is properly supported, several other bodies may be temporarily in alliance, and they may be unreliable. We must ensure that the weapons that we may be providing to the Sierra Leone army do not get into the wrong hands so that we do not find that our forces are shot in the back by people using our arms.
Mr. Hoon: The right hon. Gentleman is right. It is important that we ensure that the achievements our forces have made in Sierra Leone are lasting achievements. That is why I consciously linked the timetable for withdrawal to the prospect of an effective training team, to which, we hope, other countries will contribute, although we will take the lead and provide, I think, the bulk of those who are engaged in the training. It is important that we ensure that they have the means to carry out that training successfully and effectively.
I agree, too, that the RUF must be isolated. The continued detention of Sankoh assists in that process. We want to see him brought to trial. We want to be clear that he should no longer have any influence over the RUF in Sierra Leone. It follows from that that other countries, other forces outside that country, should not have any influence over that particular rebel group.
It is obviously important, which is why I expressed myself in very careful terms, that we maintain a degree of supervision over the distribution of those weapons, but, equally, we need to ensure that the training is accompanied by proper equipment for the forces of the Government of Sierra Leone, which will take on and continue to take on those difficult and dangerous tasks.
Mr. Tony Lloyd (Manchester, Central): The Secretary of State is right to be proud of what our Government and our troops are doing in Sierra Leone, but does he agree that a stable Sierra Leone and Sierra Leone now are legions apart? Stability requires a democratic Government who have the wherewithal to control the whole territory of Sierra Leone. The training of the army is fundamental both to controlling the diamonds, and to having an army that is accountable to that democratic Government and that is not simply one more armed band marauding and ripping up that country. In that context, my right hon. Friend is right to say that it is necessary to ensure that the army of Sierra Leone is properly equipped to take on the RUF, which itself is very well equipped because of the blood diamonds and the weapons that come through.
Will the Government make it clear to President Taylor of Liberia that his role in all this has been outrageous? His use of the profits from the diamond industries is an outrage. It is about time that he, too, cleaned up his act. That message should come not just from Britain but from the whole world community.
Mr. Hoon: My hon. Friend is right to call for stability and for the forces of the Government of Sierra Leone to be properly trained. It is obviously vital that we do not simply create a situation in which we see a repetition of the appalling events that we have witnessed over recent times--but the situation today, thanks to the efforts of British forces and others, is unrecognisably different from that three weeks ago. By securing the situation in and around the airport and in particular by giving extra confidence to both the forces of the United Nations and the Government of Sierra Leone, British forces have made a considerable impact on the ground, which I am confident we can take forward through the training arrangements that I have described.
It is also important that we take that forward in the context of international pressure, as I indicated earlier. Pressure must be put on all those in the immediate vicinity to desist from any actions or activities that might lead to further instability in Sierra Leone. That means in particular the immediate neighbours of Sierra Leone itself.
Sir Peter Emery (East Devon): Does the Secretary of State accept that we all praise the work of the British forces and that many of us wish the Royal Marine Commando who are going in the best of good fortune, but does he know of last night's statement by the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the hon. Member for Neath (Mr. Hain), to the Select Committee on Foreign Affairs about the application by President Kabbah to the British Government, after the death of the Nigerian senior officer Maxwell Kobe, for Britain to supply a British officer to take the place of that Nigerian officer, who had been co-ordinating the military forces? Was the Secretary of State informed of that application? Did he have any input into the decision making before civil servants at the Foreign Office turned it down?
Mr. Hoon: I am grateful for the right hon. Gentleman's observations about the Royal Marine Commando. I am sure that those forces will be delighted to leave HMS Ocean, to get on to the ground and to continue the excellent work that has been done by the Parachute Regiment. We have had a number of requests from the President of Sierra Leone and, as I said in my statement, we have been able to accede to certain of them. We certainly want to ensure that we are in a position to give effective advice, but we recognise above all that it is for the Government of Sierra Leone to sort out their own affairs and to ensure that they have effective forces at their disposal with which to control Sierra Leone.
Mr. Donald Anderson (Swansea, East): My right hon. Friend will know that our troops have carried out a very effective but limited operation, although the attainment of the broader political objectives that he set out will be formidably difficult to achieve. He must be aware--anyone who knows the history of Sierra Leone will be so--that very infrequently has the writ of central Government extended far beyond Freetown and Lungi.
Does he really expect the Sierra Leone army, given its degree of fragmentation and lack of morale, even with the light arms that we will supply and the United Nations, to be able to inflict such a decisive military defeat on the RUF that it will not be able to move into Liberia and regroup, creating a continuing state of turbulence? Will he not underestimate the enormous degree of difficulty in attaining that laudable objective of peace of security which he has set out?
| Next Section
| Index | Home Page |