Statement by President Borrell
07.07.2005

Parliament President Josep BORRELL held one-minute's silence after news of a coordinated series of attacks in London today.

President Borrell made the following statement to Parliament:

"In the last hour, reports have reached me of what now appears to be a co-ordinated series of attacks on London's transport system. Explosions have been detonated on three buses and four tube stations and there are already confirmed deaths and terrible injuries. Reports of attacks are continuing to arrive every few minutes.

On behalf of the Parliament, I want to express our condolences to the families of those who have died and express our solidarity to those who are injured and suffering the consequences of these barbaric acts.

As President of the Parliament, and also as a citizen of a country which experienced only last year the horror of this kind of multiple attack, I want to send, on behalf of the Parliament, a message of solidarity to the British people.

We all stand with you today, and we will never let the atrocities of terrorism defeat the values of peace and democracy in Europe."

The European Parliament has adopted a resolution on the political situation and the independence of the media in Belarus.

MEPs offer sound condemnation of the regime's "indiscriminate attacks" on media freedom, which have included arbitrary arrests, ill-treatment of detainees, disappearances, politically motivated persecution and "other acts of repression that flout the basic principles of democracy and the rule of law".

In view of this situation, MEPs call on the Council and Commission to create a complex, multi-annual programme of support for the independent media in Belarus, which Parliament should be consulted on. This support should include assistance to repressed journalists and their families, a programme of scholarships and traineeships for independent journalists, and support for the broadcasting of independent radio and television programmes from abroad.

MEPs want the EU to take strong action against the Belarus regime for media persecution, and envisage a possible visa-ban list for implicated Belarussian authorities. They consider the expulsion of democratic youth from universities and colleges to be an affront to democratic values and human rights, and call on Belarus to stop these measures.

The House stresses that EU-Belarus relations depend on the country making progress towards reform and democratisation, including with regard to the provision of objective, free and transparent media. MEPs thus recommend that the Council and Commission work with Russia towards formulating a common approach for democratisation in Belarus.

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The European Parliament today passed a joint resolution on Srebrenica, ten years after the massacre where more than 7,000 unarmed Bosnian Muslim men are thought to have been killed by Bosnian Serb forces in the UN-proclaimed safe haven.

MEPs strongly condemn the massacre and want the Council and Commission to ensure sure that the tenth anniversary of the act of genocide is adequately remembered. The resolution calls for urgent action on the part of the Republika Srpska and Serbia-Montenegro to locate Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic so that they can be brought to justice and denied the popular support MEPs consider to be an obstacle to reconciliation. MEPs remain seriously concerned at the lack of recognition of the crimes, despite the recent airing of Srebrenica video footage which led to a number of arrests. In order to secure justice, they want closer ties with the EU, including continuation of the process of integration with the EU, to be conditional upon full cooperation with the ICTY. The EU and Member States should also give full practical support to the search for truth and the path towards reconciliation.

The House calls for modification of the Dayton agreement for the purposes of the EU integration process. MEPs consider improved economic and social conditions to be the key to stable development in the region and call for the EU to accord top priority to this area. MEPs stress that the lessons learned from Srebrenica and the wars in the former Yugoslavia should serve as the basis for a strengthened EU Common Foreign and Security Policy: They further urge the UN and the relevant international institutions to put into practice the lessons learned from this failure and to be truly prepared for future peacekeeping missions.

MEPs continue to support the applicant and potential applicant countries of the Balkans in their preparation for membership, and call for adequate instruments and funding in this regard during the next financial perspective.

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The European Parliament today passed a resolution on relations between the EU, China and Taiwan and security in the Far East.

Seriously concerned about the tensions among various countries in the Far East, MEPs call on China and Taiwan to establish mutual trust and respect and to seek common ground so as to create conditions for lasting peace and stability in the region. MEPS recommend, in particular, that China and Taiwan put in place the necessary political basis for a peaceful and steady development of cross-Straits relations and resume dialogue on those relations, that they strengthen economic exchange and cooperation and push forward the 'three direct links' across the Taiwan Strait (mail, transport and trade).

The House criticises China's anti-secession law as a violation of international law and an obstacle to its declared goal of 'peaceful national reunification'. MEPs call for the maintenance of the arms embargo on China in view of concerns over the human rights situation and cross-Straights relations. In this regard, Parliament calls on China to ratify promptly the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

MEPs wish to see Taiwan better represented in international organisations and call for support of Taiwan's application for observer status in the World Health Organisation. They urge North Korea to rejoin the NPT and resume six-party talks and call on the governments of Japan, China and the Korean peninsula to begin a dialogue towards reconciliation that will ultimately lead to lasting peace and stability in the region. To this end, the House encourages bilateral agreements and a concerted effort towards reconciliation among all countries in the Far East.

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Clearing and settlement is the plumbing of the financial system. Roughly speaking, it concerns the activities whereby financial institutions deal with the consequences of trade in securities, calculating who owes what to whom and ultimately transferring ownership of the security concerned. The European Commission is carrying out an impact assessment to identify the comparative benefits of regulatory and non-regulatory options to reduce the cost of cross-border transactions. There is significant scope for increased efficiency in cross-border clearing and settlement of securities transactions, where there is a multiplicity of domestic systems in play.

MEPs adopted by 470 votes in favour to 20 against with 82 abstentions a report by Piia-Noora KAUPPI (EPP-ED, FI), which is intended to be Parliament's contribution to the Commission's development of policy in this area. The report highlights that inefficiencies in cross border transactions arise due to national differences of legal nature, technical requirements, market practices and tax procedures, and in some cases due to restrictive market practices. It says efforts to encourage integration should focus on bringing down costs of cross-border clearing and settlement, ensuring that systemic or other risks are properly managed and regulated, encouraging integration by removing competitive distortions and ensuring proper transparency and governance arrangements.

The report does not come out for or against a new directive, but it says that if the Commission does decide to propose legislation, it should focus on: re-confirming and strengthening access rights in order to ensure fair and non-discriminatory access to central clearing and settlement service providers; strengthening passporting rights for providers of clearing and settlement services supported, when needed, by regulatory convergence; allowing for transparency and enabling market forces to work effectively; achieving consistency of regulation, supervision and transparency to enable providers of clearing and settlement services to manage systemic risk and anti-competitive behaviour; establishing a functional approach to the regulation of different players, which takes into account the different risk profiles and competitive situations of different entities; introducing definitions that are coherent and consistent with existing market practices and with the terms used globally and within the EU.

MEPs argue that the removal of the 15 barriers identified by the Giovannini reports is essential. They say fiscal barriers are one reason for higher cross-border costs, and support efforts to reduce these.

Among other points made in the report, Parliament criticises the adoption by CESR-ECSB (Committee of European Securities Regulators and the European System of Central Banks) of standards in this area - they reaffirm that such standards should not pre-determine EU legislation and call for an effective means of providing parliamentary scrutiny for the work of CESR in clearing and settlement. The report also urges the Commission to make pro-active use of its general competition powers to prevent abuse of dominant positions by any of the big players in the clearing and settlement market.

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Adopted by 360 votes in favour to 79 against with 125 abstentions.

The European Parliament confirmed the decision by its presidium to take in observers from Bulgaria and Romania on 26 September. Some MEPs had raised doubts about the timing of the observers' arrival, which will be well in advance of the actual accession by the two countries. Parliament decided, however, to stick to the same format as with previous enlargements and welcome the observers shortly after the signing of the Accession Treaties. The Accession Treaty for Bulgaria and Romania was signed last April. Bulgaria will send 18 observers and Romania 35.

Meanwhile, Parliament stressed in its resolution that it will continue to follow closely Bulgaria's and Romania's progress and pointed out that it gave its approval of the accession treaties on condition that the Council and Commission fully involve Parliament in any possible decision on a postponement of Bulgaria's and Romania's accession by a year.

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The European Parliament rejected the EU-Canada agreement on the use of personal data provided by airlines to the border authorities of Canada. MEPs felt that the signature of such an agreement should be postponed until the Court of Justice takes a final decision on a very similar procedure between the EU and USA on the transfer of data, even if they agreed in principle with the content of the Canada agreement.

Parliament also claimed that for this kind of agreement, MEPs should use the assent procedure instead of the consultation procedure as it is the case now.

Even if they decided to reject the Council initial proposal for these procedural reasons, MEPs consider the content of the agreement with Canada to be an "acceptable balance" between ensuring security and protecting personal data. They argued during the debates in the Civil Liberties Committee that the agreement to transfer personal information from citizens who travel into Canada would be acceptable, since Canada has a good legislative system on data protection and because the use of such data would be strictly limited.

Content of the agreement
The Canadian government passed new legislation last year to set up the obligation to collect personal data from travellers who fly into the country. Among the measures adopted, Canada introduced from February 2005 fiscal penalties to airlines in case of non-compliance. However, the penalties were suspended for European airlines during the negotiation on the agreement, which will in principle be applied from July 2005. This fact explains the urgency of the full Parliament to give its opinion during the current plenary session, even if the rejection of the agreement by MEPs is not binding on the Council's final decision.

Once the agreement is finally signed, the Canadian border authorities will have access to the data collected in all passports -full name, date of birth, country of citizenship, etc. - and also to the Passenger Name Records (PNR), which is all the additional information that some airlines keep from their clients including -previous journeys, cars and hotel reservations, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, residential addresses, credit card information, religious or ethnic data, etc. -.

EU-USA agreement
The negotiation approach by the European Parliament is similar to that regarding the EU-USA agreement. In 2003 and 2004, MEPs adopted a number of critical resolutions, expressing serious concerns with regard to the use of PNR data. In particular, the EP stressed that using PNR data is far from being effective in the fight against terrorism and that there was a serious risk of violating the data protection principles.

Subsequently, in August 2004 the European Parliament brought an action before the Court of Justice for the annulment of the EU-US agreement, judgement on which is still pending.

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Parliament decided to return this matter to the Civil Liberties Committee for further analysis.

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Parliament adopted a non-binding resolution on the salaries of Europol staff.

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Talking about the environment and sustainable development is all very good, but providing the budget needed to act is better. That is the substance of the report on "Life +" adopted by the European Parliament. The report by Marie Anne ISLER BEGUIN (Greens/EFA, FR) was adopted with 520 votes in favour, 52 against and 15 abstentions. MEPs ask for a substantial increase in the budget proposed by the European Commission for environment policies during the years 2007-2013.
The Commission proposed 2,190 million euros. The EP asks for 9,540 million, in order to integrate at least one third of the budget needed to finance the Natura 2000 projects. In its proposal, the European Commission wanted Natura 2000 - the European ecological network of 18 000 sites established to protect biodiversity - to be financed mainly via structural and rural development funds. MEPs fear that this approach would create competition between economic priorities at the expense of environment.
Until now, many different programmes related to environment policy coexist in the European Union. LIFE, Forest Focus, sustainable urban development programme, and other ones, have their own procedures, the management of which demands considerable resources. In order to increase their efficiency and to simplify their management, a single Financial Instrument for the Environment will be created: "LIFE +". The rapporteur, Mrs Isler Béguin deplored the fact that the European Commission proposal intended to delegate a major part of the responsibilities and the management of the funds to the Member States. The plenary agreed and called for a greater role for the European Commission and for the Parliament. The Commission may decide to entrust part of the budget implementation to national authorities but, in the view of MEPs, the Commission should be responsible for following up, validating and assessing this implementation and should report to the European Parliament.

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The European Parliament adopted a joint resolution on landmines which seeks, ultimately, to achieve a universal ban by endorsing measures to halt the use, production and proliferation of mines.

MEPs call on all States to sign and ratify the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, and call on states not party to it to take steps to clear mine-affected areas and provide support for survivors.

MEPs want the USA to reconsider joining the Convention and further call on the USA not to take measures that would violate the Convention, including the production, trade in or use of any munitions that would meet the definition of anti-personnel mines and the delivery of anti-personnel mines to EU Member States and other friendly countries. They call on China to stop its production, as well as Russia who should also stop using landmines in Chechnya.

The House calls on the three remaining members of the enlarged EU to accede to and ratify the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty without delay. The Nairobi Action Plan should be fully implemented by all parties if the Convention’s humanitarian and disarmament aims in the period 2005-2009 are to be achieved.

Further measures recommended by MEPs include: the mainstreaming of Ottawa Convention requirements into development programmes with third countries where landmines are an obstacle to development, a broader interpretation of the concept of 'anti-personnel landmine' to include accidental detonation, a strengthened approach by all parties and Member States to mines and assistance for victims, increased resources for mine action, EU action against companies involved in landmines and those investing in them, and strengthened European leadership in global disarmament.

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Parliament adopted an own-initiative report on the impact of the lending activities of the European Community in developing countries.

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Parliament voted by 260 votes in favour, to 117 against with 16 abstentions to postpone the vote on this report to the next plenary session

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In a resolution adopted today, the European Parliament voiced its concern at the "extraordinarily slow progress in implementing the different commitments" of the EU action plan for Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT), which aims at tackling illegal logging. The Member States and the Commission are therefore urged to comply "without delay" with their commitments. Further disappointment comes from the Commission's failure to draft "comprehensive legislation to prohibit the import of all illegal timber, regardless of the country of origin, and to promote sustainable forest management worldwide", as requested by the EP's Industry committee in June 2004. Finally, the EP insists on being "fully involved and informed" on the progress made in negotiations on FLEGT partnership agreements with timber-producing countries.
 
The FLEGT action plan stems from a commitment taken by the EU at the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002. FLEGT was the Union's response to the governments' pledge to crack down on illegal logging that contributes to deforestation.

More information can be found at this Commission's webpage: http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/theme/forest/initiative/index_en.htm, whilst the full communication on FLEGT can be found here:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/theme/forest/initiative/docs/Doc1-FLEGT_en.pdf

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Parliament adopted a non-binding resolution, by 59 votes in favour to 14 against and 3 abstentions for specific measures for agriculture in the outermost regions of the Union.

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The European Parliament adopted a joint resolution on Zimbabwe, condemning the MUGABE regime for the intensification of its oppression of the Zimbabwean people and demanding an immediate end to the regime's mass forced evictions.

MEPs call for the establishment of an international committee of inquiry to investigate the use of food and shelter as political weapons and deplore the refusal of other African governments, particularly South Africa, SADC and the African Union to criticise Mugabe's actions or to take action against his regime. They further deplore the failure of the Council to respond to Parliament's consistent calls for increased pressure on the Mugabe regime.

They insist that aid must be made available to the Zimbabwean people through non-governmental organisations and call on the Commission to do its utmost to ensure that the delivery of aid is not hampered by the Mugabe regime.

Parliament recommends a number of other measures. These include: the closure by SADC of its regional peacekeeping training centre in Harare, the appointment of an EU Special Envoy for Zimbabwe, UN Security Council consideration of the extent to which those responsible for the oppression taking place in Zimbabwe can be held accountable, the Council's closure of loopholes in existing EU targeted sanctions and its clear commitment to their rigorous enforcement on the part of all Member States, including the curtailment of all economic links with Zimbabwe that directly benefit the regime (such as trade with farms controlled by regime members), the identification and imposition of measures against those providing financial backing for the anti-democratic activities of the regime (in cooperation with the United States and Commonwealth countries), and the prevention of family members of Mugabe's "henchmen" from gaining access to employment and educational institutions in EU Member States.

MEPs welcome the release of Roy BENNETT from prison but deplores his appalling treatment at the hands of the Mugabe regime and calls for the release of the other 30,000 innocent victims imprisoned following 'Operation Drive Out Rubbish'. And they ultimately call for Robert Mugabe to stand down and for the establishment of a transitional government in Zimbabwe involving opposition groups and other persons of goodwill in order to restore acceptable standards of governance in Zimbabwe and remedy the broken economy and the human rights situation

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The European Parliament adopted a joint resolution on Guatemala in which they condemned trafficking in children, the existence of an organised crime network with international connections engaging in the kidnapping of children, the substitution of documents, the alteration of public records, and the operation of clandestine 'nurseries', as well as abuses relating to documents authorising adoptions, and the growing number of international adoption agencies offering children for sale.

MEPs call on Guatemala to enact specific legislation on adoptions, to apply the Hague Convention on Inter-Country Adoption, and to adopt suitable measures to prevent profiteering from international adoptions. They further call for the Public Prosecutor's Office to take out penal proceedings against the child-trafficking networks. And to support children and adolescents in Latin America, a global plan of priority actions should be launched, in line with UNICEF measures.

The House wants the government of Guatemala to take the necessary measures to ensure that murders of women no longer go unpunished, and to take a proactive stand on women's rights. Also called for is the Guatemalan government's support for the actions of the Office of the Counsel for Human Rights, its recognition of the legitimacy of the work of the human rights activists and their protection, and an investigate into the recent cases of attacks on the headquarters of social organisations.

MEPs welcome the initiative of the government of Guatemala in promoting the establishment of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and congratulate the Government and Congress on their ratification of the corresponding Convention. They ask for authorities to cooperate closely with the Office, and economic and political support should be provided by the Commission.

The House repeats its recommendation to the Commission, as made in its resolution of 10 April 2003, that the EU's future strategy for Guatemala for 2007-2013 should include social cohesion, the right to food, rural development and reform of the system of landholding and land use, as priority areas for future EU cooperation policy, with an emphasis on eliminating illegal adoptions, firm support for human rights, ending impunity, respect for the rights of indigenous peoples, and promotion and protection of women's rights and the rights of the child.

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The European Parliament has adopted, by 80 votes in favour to 0 against and 2 abstentions, a joint resolution on the human rights situation in Ethiopia.

MEPs condemn the violent repression against civilians, opposition leaders and supporters and the killing of at least 36 persons during protest demonstrations on 8 June following the postponement of the final results of the general elections on 15 May 2005. The House expresses its fullest sympathy and solidarity to the people of Ethiopia and its condolences to the victims’ families and hopes that an impartial commission of inquiry will determine who was responsible and bring them to justice.

While welcoming the recent release of some 4,000 detainees as well as the government's announcement that the detainees at the Ziway military camp will now have access to their families and to the International Committee of the Red Cross, MEPs are calling for the freeing of journalists and others who are held without charge, and for those arrested to be treated in strict conformity with Ethiopian law and the Ethiopian Constitution, in accordance with international law on human rights.

The House welcomes the fact that opposition groups and international observers are able to be present at the process of hearing the electoral complaints, with a view to arriving at uncontested results, and insists that the 10 June agreement be scrupulously respected. To this end, MEPs want the European Union to continue to contribute to a peaceful and democratic solution to the Ethiopian political crisis, in particular by supplying observers to the process of inquiry into the contested results.

MEPs call on the EU and the international community to stay vigilant and to do their utmost to contribute to a peaceful solution to the current tensions and not to allow the Ethiopian democratisation process to come to a halt. They also call on the Ethiopian government to put an immediate end to the restriction of reporting of opposition activities and messages in public media, and call for a code of conduct for the press to be put in place rapidly, in consultation with the media.

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