MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
24.4.2007
pursuant to Rule 115 of the Rules of Procedure
by Pasqualina Napoletano, Jan Marinus Wiersma, Hannes Swoboda, Reino Paasilinna, Elena Valenciano Martínez-Orozco
on behalf of the PSE Group
on the repression of demonstrations in Russia
B6‑0172/2007
European Parliament resolution on the repression of demonstrations in Russia
The European Parliament,
- having regard to the objectives of consolidating democracy and political freedoms in the Russian Federation, as laid down in the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Russian Federation, of the other part (PCA)http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+TA+P6-TA-2006-0566+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN(1) , which entered into force in 1997 and expires in 2007,
– having regard to the EU-Russia human rights consultations,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Russia, and in particular its resolution of 25 October 2006 on EU-Russia relations following the murder of the Russian journalist Anna Politkovskayahttp://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+TA+P6-TA-2006-0566+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN(2) and its resolution of 13 December 2006 on EU-Russia relationshttp://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+TA+P6-TA-2006-0566+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN(4) ,
– having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
- A.whereas thousands of riot police and other forces of order forcefully tried to prevent Russian citizens from participating in peaceful demonstrations against the government, organised by the group "Other Russia" and other opposition groups and parties recently in Moscow and St. Petersburg and on an earlier date in Nishni Novgorod and St. Petersburg,
- B.whereas many participants in these demonstrations were heavily beaten up by the Russian security forces and whereas about 300 people were detained for disrupting public order, including Gary Kasparov as one of the leaders of the opposition and a German journalist,
- C.whereas the Russian authorities are in the run-up to the Parliamentary and Presidential elections increasing pressure on opposition groups and non-governmental organisations to refrain from any activities directed against the President and the government and to prevent the media from reporting about any such activities,
- D.whereas the Russian State Duma has unanimously adopted legislation introducing the possibility of up to three years imprisonment for vandalism based on ideological motives, thus allowing the authorities to punish participants in opposition protests if violence erupts,
- E.whereas the investigation of the murder of Anna Politkovskaya still has not brought any results and it has thus not been possible to bring the perpetrators to justice,
- F.whereas the Russian Federation is a full member of the United Nations, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council of Europe and has therefore undertaken to respect the fundamental rights of freedom of speech and assembly,
- 1.Expresses its deep concern about the disproportionate use of force by the Russian authorities against peaceful anti-government demonstrations over the past few weeks;
- 2.Is in particular concerned about the degree of violence used by the security forces and the arrest of several hundreds of people, including accredited journalists, during and around these demonstrations;
- 3.Urges the Russian authorities to fully respect during the run-up to the Parliamentary and Presidential elections the democratic standards and principles laid down by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council of Europe;
- 4.Voices its deep concern over the increasing intimidation and harassment of all persons critical of the current government, and reminds the Russian Government that a continuation of this tendency will negatively affect Russia's overall reputation;
- 5.Urges the Commission and the Council to clearly express these concerns in their contacts with the Russian government, in particular during the next EU/Russia Summit to be held on 18 May 2007 in Samara;
- 6.Reiterates its call for the EU-Russia Human Rights Dialogue to be stepped up so as to make it more effective and result-oriented, while fully involving the European Parliament at all levels, with a view to strengthening this element in the new PCA due to be negotiated soon;
- 7.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the parliaments and governments of the Member States, the Government and Parliament of the Russian Federation and the Council of Europe.