MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the recent attacks on medical aid workers in Pakistan

5.2.2013 - (2013/2537(RSP))

with request for inclusion in the agenda for a debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 122 of the Rules of Procedure

Charles Tannock, Ryszard Czarnecki, Paweł Robert Kowal on behalf of the ECR Group

See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0056/2013

NB: This motion for a resolution is available in the original language only.

B7‑0069/2013

European Parliament resolution on the recent attacks on medical aid workers in Pakistan

(2013/2537(RSP))

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on Pakistan, in particular its resolution of 15 December 2011 on the situation of women in Afghanistan and Pakistan,

- having regard to the statement of 18 December 2012 from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF),

- having regard to the Commission Communication entitled "a special place for children in EU external action"[1],

- having regard to Rule 122 of its Rules of Procedure,

 

 

A.  Whereas Pakistan, according to the WHO, is one of the last three countries worldwide where polio is still endemic, counting 198 infections in 2011;

B.  Whereas the Government of Pakistan is currently undertaking a polio vaccination campaign in an effort to eradicate the disease within its borders; whereas this campaign is supported internationally by the WHO, UNICEF and others and is part of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative; whereas the immunization drives are done almost exclusively by up to 225,000 local vaccination workers, in particular female health workers;

C.  Whereas according to the WHO a failure to stop polio would mean serious health risks for the region and beyond as polio is a highly infectious disease;

D.  Whereas the CIA set up a fake vaccination programme to locate Osama bin Laden, something to which the Government of Pakistan has reacted extremely negatively, for example by expelling foreign staff of international charities and jailing the doctor who took part in the CIA programme, Dr Shakil Afradi, for at least 30 years for treason;

E.  Whereas this has created a poisonous climate against vaccination workers and the Taliban are increasingly threatening anti-polio efforts across Pakistan, accusing health workers of working as US spies and alleging that the vaccine makes children sterile;

F.  Whereas in December 2012 at least eight people engaged in polio vaccinations were shot dead in Karachi and the north-west; whereas on 1 January 2013 seven charity workers, six of them women, were shot dead in the Swabi area; whereas on 29 January 2013 a policeman providing security for a polio vaccination team was killed near Swabi and whereas on 31 January 2013 two polio vaccination workers were killed in a landmine blast in north-west Pakistan, although it is unclear whether this was a targeted attack; whereas fatal attacks against vaccination workers go back at least as far as July 2012;

G.  Whereas the Government of Pakistan and the provinces of Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have temporarily suspended the vaccination campaign due to concerns over safety of health workers; whereas the WHO and UNICEF have ordered their staff members to stay off the streets;

 

 

1.  Strongly condemns the multiple attacks by extremists on polio vaccination workers as these attacks deprive Pakistan's most vulnerable populations, especially children, of basic life-saving health interventions;

2.  Expresses its deepest sympathy to the families of the victims;

3.  Applauds the efforts of the Government of Pakistan and its international partners to eradicate polio; notes that since the start of the latest immunization campaign the number of infections has reached historic lows;

4.  Furthermore applauds the courageous health workers who often volunteer to take part in these immunization campaigns;

5.  Regrets however the fact that the Pakistani government’s negative reaction to the circumstances of the location of Osama bin Laden has contributed towards a serious escalation of violence towards vaccination workers and encouraged the Taliban to employ indiscriminate violence against them;

6.  Condemns the Pakistani government’s treatment of Dr Afridi, who was instrumental in locating the world’s most notorious terrorist, responsible for killing thousands of people including Pakistani and EU citizens, and calls for his immediate release;

7.  Encourages the Pakistani authorities to continue the anti-polio immunization drive and urges the authorities to provide additional security for the health workers;

8.  Calls on the WHO, UNICEF and other international partners to reinforce their support for the polio eradication campaign in Pakistan and elsewhere;

9.  Calls on the Commission and the Member States to increase, if necessary, financial support for these campaigns, including for the related security costs borne by Pakistan and the international organizations;

10.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Government and Parliament of Pakistan, UNICEF and the WHO.

 

• [1]  COM(2008) 55 final