VP/HR — Ibrahim Halawa

30.10.2014

Question for written answer E-008553-14
to the Commission (Vice-President/High Representative)
Rule 130
Lynn Boylan (GUE/NGL)

Recent correspondence from international human rights NGO Reprieve has drawn the attention of the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and of the EU Special Representative for Human Rights to the on-going detention in Egypt — following politically motivated arrests — of hundreds of young people, including Irish national Ibrahim Halawa, who faces a potential death sentence in a mass trial now due to resume on 1 December 2014.

The promotion and protection of the rights of the child are explicit objectives of the EU (Article 3(3) TEU). The Council conclusions on ‘the promotion and protection of the rights of the child in the European Union’s external action’ make safeguarding the rights of the child a primary foreign policy objective.

1. What actions has the Vice-President/High Representative taken to support Ibrahim Halawa and the other young people mentioned above? What further initiatives will the Vice-President/High Representative take to develop a strategy for change in Egypt, in line with the EU Agenda for the Rights of the Child adopted in 2011?

2. Will the Vice-President/High Representative be raising these issues in the upcoming review of Egypt’s human rights record during the 20th session of the Universal Periodic Review Working Group?