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MICHAEL ANCRAM ADDRESSES ‘NEW GROUND’ FRINGE MEETING AT CONSERVATIVE PARTY CONFERENCE – October 8th, 2003 The Shadow Foreign Secretary and Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Michael Ancram, paid tribute to James Mawdsley and Ben Rogers for their work in promoting a ‘principled’ foreign policy. Speaking at a Party Conference fringe meeting in Blackpool, organised by Mr Mawdsley and Mr Rogers and chaired by Andrew Selous MP, Mr Ancram said he warmly supported the general direction for Conservative foreign policy outlined in New Ground. The fringe meeting, held on the third day of the Conservative Party conference just a few hours after Mr Ancram’s main platform speech, focused on the topic of ‘Conservative foreign policy: a principled approach to trade, human rights and security’. Mr Ancram emphasised his belief that foreign policy must always be based on national interest, but that it need not mean narrow, short-term interests. He highlighted human rights abuses around the world, and singled out Burma and Zimbabwe. In his main conference speech earlier in the day, Mr Ancram had accused Prime Minister Tony Blair of “standing idly by” while abuses mount in Burma and Zimbabwe. In the fringe meeting he developed this theme, arguing that Britain has failed to take the lead in the European Union in bringing about tougher sanctions against Burma. Ben Rogers summarised the ideas set out in New Ground, explaining that national interest and Conservative values provided the basis for the proposals. “We put it to you tonight that not only is it the right and principled thing to do to put the promotion of human rights, democracy and the rule of law at the heart of foreign policy, it is also in our long-term national interest, and our Party’s electoral interests,” said Mr Rogers. “Our ideas are based on deep Conservative principles …. If we are the party of freedom and small government, then that should apply to all areas of policy, domestic and foreign.” Dictators,
he added, “are not reliable allies” and therefore it is in the
interests of long-term security and trade to promote free societies.
Dictators “sow instability, they threaten their neighbours, and they
have potential, if left unchecked, to threaten us. They are not reliable
business partners because they do not respect the rule of law,
transparency, accountability.” In many countries, such as South Africa,
the Czech Republic, Indonesia and East Timor, oppressive regimes have been
toppled and replaced by former dissidents, Mr Rogers added. “If we have
been allied to the oppressors, and have not helped those who struggle for
freedom, then when they win their struggle they are less likely to wish to
befriend us.” But a
‘principled’ foreign policy was different from Labour’s
‘ethical’ foreign policy, said Mr Rogers. “Good governance, in our
view, requires all actions, whether foreign or domestic, to be ethical by
definition and so using that label is meaningless. Our “principles”
are not a new moral code, but a set of practical guidelines for what is in
our own interest, and what would work.” James
Mawdsley, recently returned from his second visit to North Korea,
suggested that radio is an ideal facility for promoting the rule of law,
freedom and human rights. He proposed that the European Union establish a
European World Radio Service (EWRS), to target specific countries, “to counter oppression and lawlessness and promote freedom and
respect for the dignity of the person”. If the European Union is to be successful, Mr Mawdsley added, “it must balance its inward-looking policies with outward-looking policies. Any organisation which does not look outward, and which does not serve a cause greater than itself, will die.” The EU will not be able to understand the full meaning of freedom and the rule of law unless it engages with the world, he argued. ·
Micheal Ancram MP Conference Speech |
