To the attention of Mr Conor O'Riordan

Private Secretary of the Foreign Affairs Minister

Brussels, May 1, 1998

Dear Mr O'Riordan,

it was really a pleasure for me to meet the Irish Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr David Andrews, and yourself last wednesday in the European Parliament in Brussels with Niall Andrews, and to have the possibility to shortly present the campaign we are fighting for and to have a new confirmation of the strong involvement of your country in the struggle for the worldwide abolition of the death penalty.

One day later, I had also the pleasure to receive your letter (dated April 20) in which you gave me some more information about the Irish position.

We believe that after the success of the two resolutions at the Human Rights Commission of the UN in Geneva (1997 and 1998) the situation is now mature to propose again a resolution at the UN General Assembly and, unlike in 1994, when the resolution was defeated by only 7 votes, we have now a strong possibility to have a consistent majority.

If that presentation is right, the first question we are faced is to find a group of countries, ready to propose to put on the agenda of the next session of the UN General Assembly, before the end of August, the question of the worldwide moratorium.

If my information is right, at the moment Italy is not willing to do that alone. But the situation would be completely different if a consistent group of countries decided to support the initiative.

I am personnaly convinced that it is possible to find such a group of countries, beginning from the 64 that co-sponsored the resolution in Geneva this year. Informal contacts I had the opportunity to have with some foreign affairs officials seem to confirme this evaluation.

In order to begin as soon as possible to involve those countries, I think one main question has firstly to be clarified: the confirmation of the willingness of Italy to lead with Ireland that initiative.

If that question is clarified, it would be important for us to understand if the various officials from the different countries we are trying to involve in that initiative, can put themselves in contact with officials from the Irish Foreign Affairs Ministry in order to coordinate the initiative.

Dear Mr O'Riordan,

I apologize to be so long. But, as you can understand the things are quite complex and the time really short if we want to succeed in this enterprise. I thank you for your disponibility and I remain, of course, at your entire disposal, for further information and, if you think it could be useful, I am ready for coming to Dublin at any moment. Best wishes to you and to the Minister David Andrews.

Sincerely yours,

Olivier Dupuis

(TRP General Secretary)