MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

15.1.2008

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 of the Rules of Procedure
by Hélène Flautre, Cem Özdemir, Alyn Smith
on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
on the Human Rights situation in Egypt

B6‑0023/2008

European Parliament resolution on the Human Rights situation in Egypt

The European Parliament,

• -Having regard to its previous resolutions on human rights in Egypt and its resolution of 19 January 2006 on violence against Sudanese refugees
• -Having regard to the EU-Egypt Association Agreement signed in Luxembourg on 25 June 2001 and in force since 1 June 2004, and in particular its article 2
• -Having regard to Article 11 of the Treaty on European Union which establishes the promotion of human rights as an objective of the common foreign and security policy
• -Having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966
• -Having regard to the UN Convention against Torture of 1984
• -Having regard to the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrants Workers and Members of their family of 1993
• -Having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948
• -Having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure
• A.Whereas the European Union and Egypt signed in March 2007 a European Neighbourhood Policy Joint Action Plan which sets out priorities among which particular attention should be given notably to the enhancing of the effectiveness of institutions entrusted with strengthening democracy and the rule of law and the promotion of human rights in all its aspects;
• B.Whereas negative human rights developments have been reported in the past months and new measures reducing the already limited human rights protection have been taken by the Egyptian government which contradict the human rights commitments enshrined in the Action Plan;
• C.Whereas the Egyptian government amended the constitution in 2007 in a way which further restricts the exercise of fundamental rights; recalling, at the same time, that the government extended the state of emergency in April 2006 for another two years and that the Emergency Law continues to be used to justify practices and abuses which deny fundamental freedoms such as freedom of expression, assembly and association as well as safeguards for fair trial;
• D.Whereas the Egyptian government has multiplied restrictive measures on freedom of association by closing down the Center for Trade Union and Worker’s Services (CTUWS) on 25 April 2007 and the Association for Human rights Legal Aid (AHRLA) on 16 September 2007; whereas, at the same time, the Ministry of Social Solidarity is planning to amend the current Law on Associations which would enforce administrative restrictions on NGOs and further limit the ability of NGOs to receive funding;
• E.Whereas recent months have also seen serious infringements of the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of the press notably through continuous harassment and charges against private media; recalling, in this respect, that current provisions of the Penal Code allow criminal prosecution for defamation;
• F.Whereas torture is considered as systematic in prison and detention facilities and stressing the government’s failure to hold accountable those responsible; whereas Egyptian human rights organizations report that since the beginning of 2007, there have been allegations of at least 30 cases of torture and 6 deaths in custody;
• G.Whereas several cases of killings, by Egyptian security forces, of migrants and asylum seekers, at the border area between Egypt and Israel were reported; noting, in this respect, that no decision has been taken to investigate these crimes and recalling that the killings of 27 Sudanese asylum seekers during a demonstration in Cairo in December 2005 still remain unpunished;

1.  Expresses its grave concern about the deterioration of the human rights situation in Egypt since the European Union and Egypt signed an ENP Joint Action Plan in March 2007;

2.  Takes the view that the negative human rights developments as well as the measures taken by the Egyptian government, notably the recent modifications of the constitution, which further undermine basic human rights protection, require a clear response from the EU;

3.  Stresses that the credibility of the ENP Action Plan with Egypt depends on the prioritization of human rights issues in any discussion with the Egyptian government and urges therefore the EU to put human rights developments very high on its agenda during the first meeting of the EU-Egypt sub-committee on political matters scheduled on 23/24 January 2008; calls, in this respect, on the EU to define a concrete timetable to fulfill the human rights chapter of the Action Plan and to base the assessment of the human rights situation on clear benchmarks; calls on the Council and the Commission to report back to the Parliament and to closely associate the Parliament in the evaluation process;

4.  Calls on the Egyptian government to fully respect international human rights standards and to bring Egyptian legislation in conformity with the International Human Rights Law;

5.  Calls on the Egyptian government to ensure and strengthen the independence of the judiciary in accordance with the EU-Egypt Action Plan and to respect and protect the freedom of expression and the right of assembly and association in accordance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; urges the Egyptian government to put an end to all forms of harassment against human rights defenders and to ensure that the Law on Associations does not impose arbitrary restrictions on peaceful activities of civil society organizations; expects that AHRLA and CTUWS will be able to resume their activities until their appeals are heard by the competent courts;

6.  Calls on the Egyptian government to put an end to the State of Emergency, to repeal the Emergency Law, including the use of military court to try civilians, which is the major obstacle to the full enjoyment of fundamental freedoms;

7.  Urges the Egyptian government to amend the Penal Code and the Code on Criminal Procedures to bring the definition of torture in line with Egypt’s obligations under the Convention against Torture; calls for the ratification of the OPCAT and for a standing invitation of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture in Egypt;

8.  Calls on the Egyptian government to fully implement the relevant Conventions related to the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers to which Egypt is Party; supports the concluding observations of the UN Committee on Migrant Workers of May 2007 which called for the re-opening of the investigations on the killing of the 27 Sudanese asylum seekers in December 2005; calls more generally for independent investigations on the killings and ill-treatments of migrants and asylum seekers, more specifically of the cases which occurred at the borders with Israel, so as to ensure that these crimes do not remain unpunished;

9.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the Government and Parliament of Egypt;