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B8-0592/2015
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MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the situation in Nepal after the earthquakes

9.6.2015 - (2015/2734(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 135 of the Rules of Procedure

Josef Weidenholzer, Victor Boştinaru, Richard Howitt, Enrique Guerrero Salom, Claude Moraes, Elena Valenciano, Pier Antonio Panzeri, Goffredo Maria Bettini, Afzal Khan, Janusz Zemke, Nicola Caputo, Neena Gill, Claudia Tapardel, Jeppe Kofod, Liliana Rodrigues, Michela Giuffrida, Doru-Claudian Frunzulică, Miroslav Poche, Momchil Nekov, Alessia Maria Mosca, Andi Cristea, José Blanco López, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Sergio Gutiérrez Prieto, Zigmantas Balčytis, Simona Bonafè, Vincent Peillon, Elena Gentile, Miriam Dalli, Enrico Gasbarra, Demetris Papadakis, Nikos Androulakis, Tonino Picula, Jonás Fernández, Julie Ward, Brando Benifei, Theresa Griffin, Liisa Jaakonsaari, Eider Gardiazabal Rubial, Eric Andrieu, Marlene Mizzi, Isabella De Monte, Hugues Bayet, Biljana Borzan, Victor Negrescu, Emilian Pavel, Flavio Zanonato, Krystyna Łybacka, Nicola Danti, Marc Tarabella, Renato Soru, Maria Grapini, Siôn Simon, Lidia Joanna Geringer de Oedenberg, Tibor Szanyi, Javi López, Csaba Molnár, Viorica Dăncilă, Péter Niedermüller, Sorin Moisă, Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández, Jytte Guteland, Olle Ludvigsson, Marita Ulvskog on behalf of the S&D Group

See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B8-0580/2015

Procedură : 2015/2734(RSP)
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B8‑0592/2015

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Nepal after the earthquakes

(2015/2734(RSP))

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on Nepal,

 

- having regard to the United Nations General Assembly resolution on strengthening emergency relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction in response to the devastating effects of the earthquake in Nepal of 13 May 2015,

 

- having regard to the joint statement on the earthquake in Asia by High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini, Commissioner for Development Neven Mimica, and Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Christos Stylianides of 25 April 2015,

 

- having regard to the visit of Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Christos Stylianides to Nepal from 30 April to 2 May 2015 and his statements of 4 May and 29 April 2015,

 

- having regard to the statement on the earthquake in Nepal of the Chair of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with the countries of South Asia of 30 April 2015,

 

- having regard to the visit of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with the countries of South Asia to Nepal on the occasion of the 9th EP/Nepal Interparliamentary Meeting from 8 to 10 April 2015,

 

- having regard to the Amnesty International report "Nepal: Earthquake recovery must safeguard human rights" of 1 June 2015,

 

- having regard to Rule 123 (2) of its Rules of Procedure,

 

A. whereas more than 8,700 people lost their lives, more than 22,000 people have been injured, more than 500,000 private houses have been destroyed and more than 279,000 others have been damaged, and four out of the seven World Heritage sites and thousands of ancient monuments, temples and monasteries have been destroyed or badly damaged in the recent earthquakes of 25 April and 12 May 2015 and their thousands of aftershocks in Nepal;

 

B. whereas according to UN estimates up to 8 million people have been affected by this natural disaster, while an estimated 2.8 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in Nepal, including an estimated 864,000 people in need of immediate humanitarian aid in hard-to-reach areas, which risk to be further isolated in the monsoon period;

 

C. whereas more than 500 major dry landslides have been reported across the mountain regions, often blocking the flow of rivers with the risk of flooding or lake burst; whereas the risks of further landslides, flooding and lake bursts are very high with a view to the coming monsoon period;

 

 

D. whereas there are serious concerns about the risks of outbreaks of communicable diseases, in particular in overcrowded areas and in areas where water, sanitation and hygiene systems have been disrupted, with special regard to the coming monsoon period;

 

E. whereas an estimated 1.7 million children, at growing risk of long-term physical and mental consequences of the crisis, are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance in Nepal; whereas around 15,000 children need therapeutic food due to severe acute malnutrition in the worst-affected areas, and around 55,000 children need supplementary feeding due to moderate acute malnutrition; whereas many Nepalese children had suffered from malnutrition and under-nutrition already before the earthquakes, while the gains achieved in the field of nutrition over the past years in the country may be undermined by the current humanitarian crisis;

F. whereas more than 1 million children have lost their schools, with 32,000 classrooms destroyed and more than 15,000 classrooms damaged according to UNESCO, in Nepal; whereas thousands of children could return to their studies in temporary learning centers over the past days; whereas, however, the vast majority of them continue to be out of school; whereas evidence shows that a prolonged period of time out of school after a crisis considerably lowers the chances that children return to their studies at a later stage;

 

G. whereas the crisis has a negative impact on security conditions in Nepal, in particular in temporary shelters and in the fields of violence against and the trafficking of women and children; whereas the Nepalese police reported about cases of groups of children taken by unrelated adults; whereas a travel ban on children unaccompanied by their parents or a legal guardian has been announced by the government, and international adoptions have been suspended in the country;

 

H. whereas the government of Nepal imposed customs duties and taxes up to 30 per cent of relief goods on the transfer of humanitarian donations to the country; whereas Nepalese officials claimed that this tax was necessary in order to ensure an effective coordination of relief efforts; whereas a large quantity of humanitarian aid has been stuck due to these burdens;

 

I. whereas there have been reports about discrimination against vulnerable groups in Nepalese society in the field of humanitarian aid distribution, which is an issue of particular concern;

 

J. whereas Nepal remains the poorest country in South Asia; whereas, according to preliminary estimates by the Nepalese Ministry of Finance, the costs of the damage caused by the earthquakes may be as high as around 10 billion USD, half of the country's GDP; whereas the earthquakes have a devastating effect on two key economic sectors: agriculture and tourism in particular; whereas an estimated 236,000 farming households have been affected by the natural disaster; whereas farmers remaining without seeds and fertilizers will not be able to plant rice, the main staple food, this season; whereas farmers who miss the 2015 planting season will be unable to harvest rice until late 2016;

 

K. whereas the government of Nepal has announced the holding of an international conference on 25 June 2015 in Kathmandu in order to mobilise international financial support for the reconstruction and the rehabilitation of the country;

L. Whereas the natural disaster hit Nepal in a political deadlock in its constitutional process, a key part of its transition to democracy; whereas all main parties agree on the importance of concluding this process at the earliest; whereas, however, the issues of the electoral system, the judiciary, the form of government and the federal restructuring of the country remain areas of divergence;

 

M. whereas Nepalese political forces responded to the natural disaster and the humanitarian crisis in a spirit of unity; whereas, on 13 May 2015, the Parliament of Nepal, on a joint motion moved by all political parties, unanimously adopted a resolution to support early recovery efforts; whereas political parties have mobilised thousands of their activists and members to construct temporary shelters for earthquake victims;

 

N. Whereas the EU and its Member States immediately activated their crisis response and humanitarian aid mechanisms following the earthquakes in Nepal; whereas the EU provided immediate humanitarian relief worth 6 million EUR, with a special focus on rural and remote areas, and decided to fast-track the release of 16,6 million EUR from its development aid to the country; whereas the EU and its Member States together are providing more than 40 million EUR in emergency and early recovery assistance to Nepal, in addition to the assets and support provided under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism;

 

1. Expresses its deepest condolences to the families of the victims and its strong solidarity with the people of Nepal after the recent devastating earthquakes in the country;

 

2. Applauds the heroic efforts of Nepalese institutions and society in the aftermath of the earthquakes and welcomes the humanitarian relief provided by the EU, its Member States and the international community to the country, but expresses its concerns about the fact that hundreds of thousands of people continue to remain without aid in Nepal; calls therefore for further intensified efforts in this field and stresses that providing humanitarian relief to people living in remote hard-to-reach areas, which risk to be further isolated in the monsoon period, must be a priority; encourages the EU, its Member States and other international actors to provide technical support to and ensure a high level of coordination and cooperation with local authorities and organisations in this regard;

 

3. Urges the government of Nepal to facilitate free and smooth access for all incoming humanitarian rescue and relief provisions to the country by ensuring that these goods be exempt of customs duties and taxes and by solving the obstacles resulting in lengthy customs clearance and other administrative procedures, and welcomes the measures taken by the government of Nepal in this latter field;

 

4. Stresses the importance of emergency health care and the measures aimed at preventing the outbreaks of communicable diseases in Nepal; calls on the EU and the international community to support the revitalization of health facilities and services in the country, in particular in remote hard-to-reach areas, through delivering medical tents and equipment to substitute for destroyed health facilities;

 

 

5. Calls for special attention to the particularly vulnerable situation of children and women in the humanitarian crisis in Nepal, with special regard to the malnutrition and under-nutrition of tens of thousands of children, the importance of bringing children back to school, and the increasing violence against and growing trafficking of women and children;

 

6. Expresses its concerns about the reported cases of discrimination against vulnerable groups in Nepalese society in the field of humanitarian aid distribution, in particular in rural areas, and urges the Nepalese government to ensure equal access to rescue and relief provisions for all in the country;

 

7. Stresses the crucial importance of increasing Nepal's preparedness to future natural disasters; urges the Nepalese government to ensure that reconstruction plans include measures to mitigate the effects of natural disasters, including through investing in and prioritising earthquake-proof infrastructure, and to address the issue of the Kathmandu airport and other key transport hubs in the country as bottlenecks in crisis response situations; stresses that the National Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Plan should address also other key issues, including the fight against poverty, environment protection, and climate change;

 

8. Stresses that Nepal, as a post-conflict country, needs further domestic efforts and international support in its transition towards democracy; calls on Nepalese political forces to work together in a spirit of constructive cooperation and compromise-seeking to adopt a new democratic and inclusive constitution, which meets the aspirations of the Nepalese people, as a milestone in the peace process and a significant contribution to a swift and successful post-disaster recovery;

 

9. Stresses that international humanitarian relief to Nepal, as an immediate response to the humanitarian crisis, should be followed by a comprehensive and effective international aid package serving the long-term recovery and development of the country; stresses the crucial importance of a speedy recovery of the agricultural sector in particular; welcomes the decision of the Nepalese government to organise an international conference on 25 June 2015 in Kathmandu with the aim of mobilising international financial support for the reconstruction and the rehabilitation of the country, and urges the EU to play an active role in these efforts;

 

10. Welcomes the fact that the EU has recently tripled the amount of funds dedicated to EU-Nepal cooperation in its budget; urges the EU to continue to support Nepal in its transition towards democracy and in the field of development cooperation; urges the EU to channel its aid funding through local organisations where possible, in order to promote self-sufficiency and support local industries and businesses, which is crucial also to achieve a swift transition to sustainable recovery;

 

11. Calls for effective measures by the government of Nepal against corruption in the country; stresses the importance of developing systems of internal financial control with high levels of transparency in order to ensure the efficient use of EU and international development aid to the country; urges the Commission to provide support to the Nepalese authorities in this regard;

 

12. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy/Vice President of the Commission, the parliaments and governments of Member States, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and the parliament and government of Nepal.