Apr 07, 2008

ALDE Plan of Action for European Parliament


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A recent report produced by Marco Cappato MEP highlights improvements the EU needs to make to its policy on human rights.  Examining problems of adopting common positions, the prevalence of national interests, and the major abuses still perpetrated today, the report commends and criticizes the policies and instruments adopted to date. 

Below is an article published by UNPO:

The Hague, 7 April 2008 - The European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs is currently reviewing a draft report assessing the conclusions of the latest EU human rights report for 2007.  Produced by Marco Cappato MEP of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), it voices several calls for action across a spectrum of concerns, issues and obligations.  It also notes many areas of concern.

In institutional terms the report urges greater support for existing bodies such as the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights.  Simultaneously, the report calls for the strengthening of existing European institutions – particularly in the face of national interests which in such cases as China and Burma have prevented a strong and coherent European policy from emerging.  The lack of such a policy has hampered unified responses to the plight of human rights defenders in countries such as China, Burma, Ethiopia, Iran and Russia.

A common standard should be established by the European Union so that the respective countries can be judged fairly against set criteria.  This is particularly important when dealing with serial rights abusers such as China.  The report thus takes note of China’s policies toward the Mongol, Tibetan and Uyghur minorities within its provinces and expresses the need for a common approach from all EU Member States in calling for greater rights for nations within China.

The same unity of purpose is needed in dealing with Iran and Russia, the report concludes.  Repeated abuses of the rights of ethnic minorities and election norms should be proactively addressed by the European Union. 

In addition to strengthened European institutions the report proposes a Court of Human Rights to engage democratic states in the Asia-Pacific region.  Such a step stands to send an important signal to a region plagued by states such as Burma, Indonesia, Laos, who in varying degrees are guilty of perpetrating abuses upon the peoples within its borders.  Calls to implement the rights of human defenders in Burma, Laos, and Vietnam amongst others would reinforce such steps and demonstrate an EU commitment to human rights.  At present the European Commission also only commits limited funds to projects in Asia, and the report expresses the need for more micro-projects that could be aimed more at community based initiatives.

A number of European Days are also noted – the report commending the decision by the Justice and Home Affairs Council to establish a European Date against the Death Penalty to be marked annually on 10 October and the Anti-Trafficking Day held on 18 October 2007.  However the report also declared a desire for 2010 to be designated a European Year of Non-Violence, preceded by a European Conference on Non-Violence in 2009.

The resoundingly supportive welcome the report received in the European Parliament will hopefully be mirrored when it comes up for final debate on 7-8 May 2008.  Should the report fail to win support, it will be sending a strong signal to those perpetrators of human rights abuse that their actions may win condemnation but that they can continue to act with impunity.  However, the hope should be that the first week of May 2008 will mark another step by the European Parliament to safeguarding the human rights of those throughout the globe.

 

Note:

The updated report can be accessed (in PDF format) by clicking here.

To read the ALDE press release, please click here.