MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

04.07.2005

with request for inclusion in the agenda for the debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 115(5) of the Rules of Procedure
by Maragrete Auken, Marie Hélène Aubert and Frithjof Schmidt on behalf on the Green/Efa group
on ◄Zimbabwe ►

B6-0416/2005

European Parliament resolution on Zimbabwe

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

• A.whereas the Zimbabwe government's eviction campaign from Harare and other urban centres has left around 275 000 people without shelter or livelihood, according to UN estimates,
• B.whereas if the eviction campaign continues it will adversely affect up to a million people evicted without prior notice,
• C.whereas the Zimbabwe government denied until recently the existence of a humanitarian crisis in which the evicted population found themselves without any access to humanitarian aid,
• D.whereas with over 24% HIV prevalence, decreasing access to health services can severely increase mortality rates as well as risk of HIV transmission,
• E.whereas the humanitarian situation of the country is very critical and some 9 million people are now living below the poverty line,
• F.whereas the parliamentary elections of March 2005 did not fulfil principles and guidelines laid down by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) of which Zimbabwe is a member,
• G.whereas South Africa's quiet diplomacy did not deliver the expected result of a compromise end to the country's political crisis,
• 1.Condemns the forced evictions of thousands of people from Harare and other urban centers and the repression conducted by the government of Zimbabwe which constitutes blatant violation of human rights;
• 2.Strongly condemns the systematic repression against members of political opponents and those who fight for human and people's rights in Zimbabwe;
• 3.Welcomes the appointment of a UN Special Envoy to investigate the eviction and destruction of the shanty dwellings and calls for an end to such action;
• 4.Calls upon the government of Zimbabwe to respect international conventions on human rights, freedom of opinion and to guarantee the independence of the judiciary system;
• 5.Calls on the African Union especially to implement the recommendation of the African Commission on Human and People's Rights calling on Zimbabwe to restore impartial judiciary and security forces, cease arbitrary arrests of political opponents and revise restrictive media and security legislation;
• 6.Calls for unrestricted access by the population to humanitarian assistance, including that offered by NGOs, and the setting up of transparent distribution mechanisms;
• 7.Condemns the utilisation of food aid as a political weapon against opposition supporters, and asks the government of Zimbabwe to guarantee food distribution to the population regardless of political affiliation;
• 8.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the governments of the Member States and the Government of Zimbabwe.