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Neljapäev, 10. juuni 2021 - Strasbourg

7.2. Olukord Sri Lankas, eelkõige vahistamised terrorismi tõkestamise seaduse alusel

  Puhemies. – Esityslistalla on seuraavana keskustelu seitsemästä Sri Lankan tilannetta ja erityisesti terrorismintorjuntalain nojalla tehtyjä pidätyksiä koskevasta päätöslauselmaesityksestä (2021/2748(RSP))*.

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* Ks. pöytäkirja

  Tomáš Zdechovský, Autor. – Paní předsedající, Evropská unie tento týden probírala na svém plénu uplatnění podmíněnosti v případě porušení právního státu. Pokud chceme být přísní na sebe, musíme být stejně přísní i na naše partnery. Není přece možné, abychom tolerovali, že bude někdo na základě vágních ustanovení protiteroristického zákona zavírán do vězení nebo mu dokonce bude hrozit i smrt.

Já osobně vnímám situaci v jižní Asii jako velmi důležitou. Šrí Lanka, Maledivy, Indie jsou dlouhodobí obchodní partneři Evropské unie. Nicméně ta situace na Šrí Lance a v dalších státech se v současné době začala prostě výrazně měnit a řekněme, že možná i zhoršovat. Nemůžeme dlouhodobě tolerovat, že novináři a aktivisté nebo lidé z menšin jsou předmětem státní šikany a výhrůžek smrtí nebo že jsou opakovaně napadáni na ulici.

Proto bychom chtěli našim přátelům na Šrí Lance poslat jasný vzkaz, že Evropská unie nikdy nebude našim partnerům říkat, co mají dělat, ale bude se snažit jim poradit, že ta situace, která je v současné době na Šrí Lance, je dlouhodobě neudržitelná. Jestli chtějí mít za partnera Evropskou unii, musí začít okamžitě s touto situací něco dělat.

  Isabel Santos, Autora. – Senhora Presidente, recordo que, em 2019, no Sri Lanca, após a missão de observação eleitoral do Parlamento Europeu, para lá das considerações sobre o ato eleitoral e recomendações para o futuro, referi o quanto tinha sido tocante ver os cingaleses, lado a lado, a exercerem o seu direito democrático, independentemente da sua origem, religião ou posição social.

Um sinal da sua vontade de trabalhar juntos, que os políticos e líderes deviam interpretar obrigando-se a unir o país. Nada disto foi dito por acaso. O perfil de quem subia ao poder e o discurso altamente divisivo da campanha eleitoral deixava-me apreensiva. Com o decorrer do tempo a reversão das salvaguardas constitucionais, a obstrução política à prestação de contas, a retórica excludente, a intimidação da sociedade civil e o uso da lei antiterrorismo para a promoção de detenções arbitrárias de ativistas, advogados e escritores mostraram que os meus receios eram fundados.

Diante disto a ação da União Europeia em defesa dos valores universais que a guiam não pode admitir ambiguidades.

Todos os detidos ao abrigo desta lei devem ser julgados de forma justa e, se não forem acusados, devem ser libertados imediatamente. O momento de avaliação do instrumento de preferência constitui uma oportunidade de respeito das obrigações do Sri Lanca em matéria de direitos humanos.

  Svenja Hahn, Verfasserin. – Frau Präsidentin! Die Menschenrechtslage in Sri Lanka verschlechtert sich dramatisch. Insbesondere das Antiterrorgesetz zielt auf ethnische und religiöse Minderheiten ab. Hunderte Menschen können ohne Prozess bis zu zwei Jahre in vom Militär kontrollierte Lager gesteckt werden. Sri Lankas Regierung muss diese diskriminierenden Gesetze aufheben oder durch eine Gesetzgebung ersetzen, die im Einklang mit ihren internationalen Verpflichtungen steht.

Bereits 2017 hat die Kommission die Abschaffung des Antiterrorgesetzes zur Bedingung gemacht, damit Sri Lanka erneut bevorzugten Zugang zum EU-Binnenmarkt erhält. Denn dafür müssen unsere Handelspartner grundlegende Menschenrechte einhalten. Die EU ist der zweitgrößte Exportmarkt Sri Lankas. Der bevorzugte Zugang zum EU-Binnenmarkt ist nicht bedingungslos. In diesem Jahr wird überprüft, ob Sri Lanka noch die Voraussetzungen dafür erfüllt.

Liebe Kommission, es muss klar sein: Wer die Regeln nicht erfüllt, darf keine Vorteile haben. Der bevorzugte Zugang zum Binnenmarkt frei von Zöllen und Abgaben ist für Entwicklungsländer eine enorme Möglichkeit für wirtschaftlichen Fortschritt. Das ist Handel, der konkret Chancen schafft. Der ermöglicht vielen Menschen Wege aus der Armut und rein in die Selbstbestimmung. Besonders auch, weil unsere Handelspartner dafür grundlegende Menschenrechte achten müssen.

Deshalb ist es so wichtig, dass wir als EU Konsequenzen ziehen, wenn ein Handelspartner ganz grundlegende Verpflichtungen nicht erfüllt. Wir dürfen es nicht hinnehmen, wenn unsere Regeln und Werte unterminiert werden! Das gebietet der Respekt vor Menschenrechten, das ist aber auch eine Frage der Glaubwürdigkeit auf der Weltbühne. Wenn wir als EU morgen eine ernstzunehmende außenpolitische Macht sein wollen, dann müssen wir heute unserer Verantwortung als wirtschaftliche Macht gerecht werden.

  Sara Matthieu, author. – Madam President, Sri Lanka has had a difficult past but we need to focus on the future. What’s happening right now under the Prevention of Terrorism Act is extremely worrying. We’re seeing arbitrary detention and Ahnaf Jazeem, a 26-year-old poet and teacher, has been in prison for over a year now without any fair trial. We also see flagrant discrimination of the LGBTQI community under the current penal act. Colleagues, this is unacceptable. If the EU wants to be consistent, the respect for human rights has to be a clear precondition for trade preferences. I therefore call on the Sri Lankan authorities to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act and to focus on reconciliation.

  Ryszard Czarnecki, autor. – Pani Przewodnicząca! Pani Komisarz, gratuluję wystąpienia. Jest takie stare polskie powiedzenie, które mówi, że często widzimy źdźbło w oku innego człowieka, a nie widzimy belki w naszym oku.

Mam wrażenie, że nasza Unia Europejska działa odwrotnie, że często dyskutujemy o źdźble w oku takiego czy innego państwa członkowskiego, a nie widzimy belki w oczach państw, z którymi pracujemy, którym pomagamy, których rozwój gospodarczy wspieramy, także poprzez inwestycje. Cejlon (Sri Lanka) to kraj związany z Unią Europejską w wymiarze ekonomicznym i nie tylko. Pamiętamy: W tej izbie przez szereg lat był sympatyczny i ważny poseł Nirj Deva, który urodził się właśnie na Cejlonie. Myślę, że dzisiaj trzeba bardzo wyraźnie ponad podziałami politycznymi powiedzieć, że domagamy się przestrzegania praw człowieka w tym kraju, i cieszę się, że mamy tę wspólną rezolucję.

  Marisa Matias, Autora. – Senhora Presidente, tão pouco tempo depois de uma guerra civil tão sangrenta o povo do Sri Lanca merece muito melhor. A vitória de Rajapaksa nas eleições de 2019 e a constituição do seu governo traduziram-se em alterações constitucionais graves, em alterações ao Código Penal e na instrumentalização da lei antiterrorista para fins políticos e de censura.

É por isso que a comunidade internacional se está a unir para reagir às detenções arbitrárias de ativistas, poetas, jornalistas, professores, enfim, de todos aqueles que querem ter uma voz independente e livre.

E é por isso também que nos devemos unir contra os ataques à comunidade LGBTI+ e é por isso também que apresentamos esta resolução.

Apelamos ao governo do Sri Lanca que abandone a lei antiterrorista que está a ser instrumentalizadora e apelamos ao governo do Sri Lanca que cumpra o direito internacional.

  Dominique Bilde, auteure. – Madame la Présidente, comment s’associer à une résolution relative à la lutte antiterroriste au Sri Lanka qui semble presque éluder les attentats islamistes de Pâques contre la minorité chrétienne, lors desquels périrent en 2019 quelque 260 personnes, attaques qui avaient a posteriori reçu le blanc-seing du chef de l’État islamique de l’époque?

Force est tout d’abord de rappeler qu’au Sri Lanka, comme ailleurs, qui dit législation antiterroriste dit mesures d’exception. Ceci ne justifie évidemment en rien les atteintes à la dignité humaine, mais reconnaissons également les engagements pris par le Sri Lanka contre la torture ainsi que les tentatives de révision de sa législation antiterroriste de 1979.

Les causes d’inquiétude pour ces États insulaires ne manquent pas. Outre les droits fondamentaux et la gouvernance, la mainmise grandissante de la Chine dans le cadre de sa nouvelle route de la soie en est également une.

Tous ces éléments doivent être pris en compte à leur juste valeur dans une évaluation des relations de l’Union européenne avec ce pays, sans parti pris ou «deux poids, deux mesures».

  Seán Kelly, on behalf of the PPE Group. – Madam President, the South Asian island of Sri Lanka, fondly referred to as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean, has witnessed a concerning escalation of discrimination against, and violence towards, Muslims and minority groups in recent years. Since the Easter bombings in 2019, the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) has been accepted as a necessary tool to manage the threat of terrorism. However, in its application, it has broadly affected people who identify as Muslim. The PTA provides the police with powers to search, arrest and detain suspects causing harm and suffering to those whom the government of the day perceive to be a threat. Take for example the case of Ahnaf Jazeem, a 26-year-old poetry teacher who was arrested simply for publishing poetry, which the authorities claimed promotes extremism. Jazeem has now been detained for a year without charge. This is just one of the countless arbitrary detentions permitted under the PTA.

This counter-terrorism legislation must be brought in line with international standards without delay, otherwise we must review trade preferences for Sri Lanka.

  Nikolaj Villumsen, on behalf of the The Left Group. – Madam President, the human rights violations in Sri Lanka are totally unacceptable. Unfortunately, the oppression in Sri Lanka is not new. Through decades, the Tamils have been deprived of their fundamental rights and freedom.

Today, we send a clear message from the European Parliament to the Government of Sri Lanka: allow access to the UN. We need an independent UN investigation into the war crimes committed during the end of the civil war with the Tamil Tigers. The war crimes against the civil Tamil population need to be investigated and those responsible for the genocide need to face justice. Tens of thousands of Tamil families do not know what happened to their loved ones yet. This is unacceptable. The oppression of human rights in Sri Lanka must end. The oppression of the Tamil population must end now.

  Fabio Massimo Castaldo (NI). – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, cara Commissaria, il Prevention of Terrorism Act ci tiene davvero al sicuro? Quanti individui innocenti siamo disposti a sacrificare sull'altare di una sicurezza spesso solo percepita? E soprattutto cosa ci fa sentire più sicuri? Gli arresti arbitrari o l'effettiva trasparenza e responsabilità dell'operato delle autorità nazionali? Queste sono le domande che lo scorso 25 maggio Ermiza Tegal e Amra Ismail, due avvocate attiviste per i diritti umani in Sri Lanka, ponevano alla società civile e alle autorità nazionali dalle colonne di "Groundviews", una delle poche testate indipendenti rimaste nel paese.

Queste domande dovrebbero scuotere le coscienze di chiunque creda nell'essenzialità dei diritti umani e nelle libertà individuali, e le nostre, care colleghe e cari colleghi, che siamo chiamati a difendere e rafforzare questi valori in Europa e nel mondo. Non possiamo continuare a guardare dall'altra parte mentre un popolo intero è costantemente a rischio di finire triturato, schiacciato nell'occhio di una macchina giudiziaria infernale e fallace.

Chiediamo azioni immediate e concrete al governo di Colombo, affinché venga posta fine a questo regime di arresti arbitrari e spesso politicizzati che da oltre quarant'anni opprime lo Sri Lanka.

  Helena Dalli, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, the EU enjoys and values the broad and multifaceted relationship it has developed with Sri Lanka over the past decades. The EU’s approach towards that country has always been underpinned by full respect for values and international standards, stressing the importance of upholding human rights, inclusion and reconciliation.

The EU much regretted Sri Lanka’s withdrawal from UN Human Rights Council Resolution 30/1 without any real domestic measures to confirm that the government is taking reconciliation seriously, and its refusal to co—sponsor the new Resolution 46/1 adopted by the Council in March.

Parliament’s resolution points to a number of worrying developments, and the EU clearly noted in the Human Rights Council in March that reports by, notably, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, indicated trends towards a deteriorating human rights situation, including those of the LGBTIQ community.

Parliament rightly emphasises that security forces continue to apply the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), which deprives detainees of due process rights, authorises executive—sanctioned detention without charge and has facilitated the use of torture. Amending the PTA to bring it in line with international standards was a key commitment of Sri Lanka in the run—up to its readmission to the Generalised Scheme of Preferences in 2017.

The law is not in line with the conventions that Sri Lanka has to implement under the GSP+. We have raised the issue with the new authorities and they confirmed they are intent on revisiting the provisions of the PTA with a view to making the appropriate amendments. So far, however, there has been no progress and we have seen that on 9 March the scope of the act was broadened to allow for two years of detention without trial for those suspected of causing religious, racial or communal disharmony.

The issue will remain at the heart of our engagement with Sri Lanka in the framework of the GSP+ monitoring. We will continue our open and critical engagement with Sri Lanka, not only within the framework of the GSP+ monitoring, but also in our regular bilateral dialogue.

  Puhemies. – Keskustelu on päättynyt.

Äänestys toimitetaan tänään.