MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
21 February 2005
pursuant to Rule 115 of the Rules of Procedure
by Maria Martens, Bernd Posselt and Charles Tannock
on behalf of the EPP-ED
on ◄ The situation in Togo
B6-0131/2005
European parliament resolution on the situation in Togo
The European Parliament,
- having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in Togo,
- having regard to the statement of Javier Solana, EU High Representative for the CFSP, of 7 February 2005,
- having regard to the declarations of the African Union, the United Nations, and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) meeting in Niamey (Niger) on 9 February 2005,
A. Whereas following the sudden death of President Gnassingbe Eyadéma on 5 February, after 38 years in power, the Togolese armed forces installed his 39-year-old son, Faure Gnassingbe, as President,
B. Whereas according to the country's Constitution, power should have passed to Fambare Ouattara Natchaba, the Speaker of Togo's National Assembly, who would be charged with organising presidential elections within 60 days,
C. Whereas Mr Natchaba had been in Brussels the previous week attending meetings of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly and was prevented from returning to Togo by the closure of the country's external frontiers by order of the Togolese armed forces;
D. Whereas Togo's National Assembly, which is dominated by Eyadéma's Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) party, was hastily convened on 6 February to retroactively legitimise Gnassingbe's seizure of power and to amend the country's Constitution to allow Gnassingbe to rule for the next three years by serving out the remainder of his father's term,
E. Whereas ECOWAS Heads of State, meeting in Niamey (Niger) on 9 February 2005, strongly condemned as a coup d'état the military intervention which led to Faure Gnassingbe being installed as President, condemned the subsequent manipulation of the Constitution by the National Assembly, and demanded of the Togolese authorities to restore the old Constitution so that presidential elections can be held in two months, or face sanctions,
F. Whereas EU cooperation with Togo has been suspended since 1993, over concerns about human rights abuses, lack of democracy and good governance,
1. Expresses its deep concern about the developments of the last days in Togo and joins the calls from the International Community, in particular from African Union Commission Chairman Konaré, African Union Chairman in Office President Obasanjo and ECOWAS, to the Togolese authorities, urging them to act in accordance with the country's Constitution and relevant legislation;
2. Considers that the sanctions applied by ECOWAS against Togo after 10 days of fruitless mediation efforts, and which include the expulsion of Togo from ECOWAS, the recall of Ambassadors, and a ban on the arms trade and on visas, represent a welcome example of the maturity and sense of responsibility of West African leaders;
3. Condemns as a coup d'état the military interference in the succession to the Presidency of Togo by Mr Faure Gnassingbe, rather than by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Fambare Ouattara Natchaba;
4. Considers the Togolese National Assembly's replacement of its Speaker Mr Natchaba by Mr Gnassingbe to have been effected through illegitimate pressure by the military;
5. Further condemns the instantaneous and unconstitutional revision of the Constitution to remove the provision for elections to be held within 60 days of the appointment of a new president and its replacement by a provision permitting the new president to serve out the term of the previous one, thereby allowing Mr Faure Gnassingbe to hold the office of President until 2008;
6. Also condemns the decision to forbid all public demonstration for a period of two months, the closing down of 8 private TV and radio stations, and the undue army pressure on the independent media warning journalists about their coverage; calls for the Togolese armed forces to remain in barracks and to refrain from activities that could lead to further unrest;
7. Considers the procedures followed and their outcome to be contrary to democratic principles and welcomes the declarations of the African Union and many African leaders to this effect; considers that this conduct removes from Togo any claim for it to be considered a democratic state and that it will clearly have negative consequences as far as any resumption of aid from the European Union is concerned;
8. Calls on the Togolese National Assembly and other authorities to take immediate steps to remedy the situation and to ensure that free and fair elections, with full provision for international observation, are held within the next two months, according to the Constitution;
9. Reminds the Government and the Parliament of Togo of the fact that holding free, fair and democratic elections is the only way to designate a legitimate successor to President Eyadéma;
10. Encourages the Togolese Authorities to continue implementing the engagements undertaken in the framework of recent political consultations between Togo and the EU, which will pave the way to democracy, rule of law and respect of fundamental rights;
11. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Secretaries-General of the UN, the AU and ECOWAS, the Co-Presidents of the ACP-EU JPA, and the President, Government and National Assembly of Togo.
115-final-EPP-ED-Togo.doc