THE Government is again being urged to ratify a convention providing legal sanction against states or organisations which kill or harm soldiers on United Nations peacekeeping operations.
The Fianna Fail MEP, Mr Jim Fitzsimmons, said yesterday it was inexplicable that the Republic had not yet ratified the convention given the Defence Forces' commitment to UN operations.
Mr Fitzsimmons called for the immediate ratification of the UN Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel. The convention seeks to extend Geneva Convention protocols and protections to soldiers on peacekeeping operations. It would allow international sanctions against states or non government organisations which attack or kill peacekeepers.
The convention has already been ratified by 26 countries, including the United States, Denmark, France and Germany.
The soldiers' representative association, PDFORRA, has been lobbying unsuccessfully for ratification of the convention for more than a year.