34 Mr. Hilliard asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the efforts, if any, he has made and intends to make regarding the fatwa against the writer Salman Rushdie; and if he will meet with the Iranian Ambassador on the issue in view of the fact that this fatwa is in its seventh year. [5285/96]

The Iranian Government is reminded of the importance we attach to a resolution of the Rushdie issue at every meeting that I and other Government Ministers have with them. The main thrust of our efforts, however, is through the European Union, which has taken up the issue of the fatwa against Mr. Salman Rushdie within the context of its critical dialogue with Iran. Since its establishment at the Edinburgh European Council in December 1992, this dialogue has provided a mechanism for consultation between the EU and Iran on a range of issue of mutual interest. The Madrid European Council last December reaffirmed that the EU would keep up its efforts within the framework of the critical dialogue to obtain a satisfactory solution in respect of Salman Rushdie and called upon the Iranian authorities to respond constructively to its efforts.

The Government's view on the fatwa are reflected in the statement issued by the European Union on 13 February last to mark the seventh anniversary of the fatwa. This declaration stated that the fatwa was in defiance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the principle of the sovereignty of states.