Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-12-01-Speech-3-099"
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"en.19991201.9.3-099"2
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"Mr President, Members of the European Parliament, first I would like to express my thanks for the opportunity to present the European Union’s first annual report on human rights. My intention is not to repeat the content of the report, but to take a look at the future.
The annual report this time focuses on the EU’s external relations. This first annual report, however, already includes a section that discusses EU action to prevent racism within the EU’s own territory. For the work of the EU to gain credibility, we must ourselves observe those same principles with respect to human rights that we demand from others. In future, there will be a need to examine the situation within the Union more broadly, as we said when we were preparing the report. We must be fully prepared for this. For example, in future, greater consideration might be given to the topics of asylum and refugees as they constitute an essential aspect of human rights.
The purpose behind the annual report is to describe the work of the EU and its thematic content over a given period. It does not therefore attempt to be a comprehensive depiction of the human rights situation in different countries. It may be that this will prove to be necessary later. It may be justifiable to examine the situation in different countries more closely. However, that would require more developed mechanisms and facilities for coherent monitoring and analysis than the EU possesses at present.
The first chapters of the report describe the bases of the EU’s policy on human rights. These include the principles of universality and indivisibility. After this we have tried to describe the key players and systems in the EU arena and with regard to international organisations. There is also a section on priorities and questions of human rights according to theme, such as the rights of women, children and minority groups, and opposition to the death penalty and racism. We also, justifiably, attach weight to the importance of economic, social and cultural rights.
I am quite aware that the content and form of the report need improving although we have already tried to make it concise and readable. Since the annual report was approved in the Council it has also been available on the Internet. In addition, it is to be published in all EU languages in the Council’s series of publications and it will be circulated far and wide. This is because we think it is an important part of the promotion of human rights to ensure that people know what these rights are all about.
The Treaty of Amsterdam and the regulations on human rights that have recently entered into force will improve the EU’s chances of promoting human rights. These increased opportunities must now be backed up by something tangible and meaningful. In this regard, the EU policy on human rights is at a dynamic development stage. Feedback from Parliament on this first annual report and its recommendations will also be most welcome. As a result, we could make headway in the next annual report in a direction that we will have decided upon together.
I would like to mention one point as a separate item. As I said at the start, we need deeper and more analytical cooperation with other European organisations, such as the Council of Europe and the OSCE. This is no mere polite expression of a wish, but a very important area to focus on when the EU contemplates its action in this area. We have to avoid duplicating the work. We will not tolerate the creation of double standards, which would be a problem for the applicant countries as well as ourselves. Monitoring human rights in practice means monitoring the application of these human rights standards. The development of these standards is an area in which the experience of the Council of Europe is greatest. We in the Union should thus make use of the experience of others.
I believe that the working party set up to produce a Charter of Fundamental Rights is also now in a very important position. In putting it together efforts were made to take different areas of expertise into account. Hopefully, we will receive sound advice from the group on how we can increase the amount of work the EU does to improve human rights, in such a way that we acquire some genuine added value and it is not just a question of putting our initials to these issues.
My vision is that human rights will, in future, become more prominent in very different areas of debate. The active discussion on human rights at the preliminary round of WTO talks at Seattle is a good indication of this. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning the outcome of the meeting at Tampere. In the future, the EU has to take more obvious account of the impact all its work has on the implementation of human rights. The European Parliament, you yourselves, have an important role to play in this. I appreciate it that Parliament closely monitors human rights issues and passes comment, sometimes forcefully and using colourful language, on the actions of governments. In so doing, Parliament significantly complements intergovernmental cooperation. I hope that the first annual report on human rights for its part will facilitate the realisation of this welcome development.
I have purposefully shortened my speech somewhat, as we are behind schedule and, unfortunately, the airline I am travelling with will not delay the departure of my flight just because I am late.
Developing the EU’s policy on human rights is a huge challenge that requires courage combined with forbearance. To be effective, the EU must be able to achieve cooperation at many levels. Cooperation has first to be enhanced among the institutions of the EU. The EU must also be ready to cooperate more widely with civil society and the NGOs. The EU supports the work of human rights defenders everywhere in the world. For this we need the input of the NGOs.
The EU must also act in cooperation with international organisations such as the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the UN. This will also require a willingness to embrace transparency. On the other hand, the EU’s aspirations with regard to visibility must not lead to a situation where there is overlap or its cooperation with other organisations becomes problematic.
The annual report on human rights must be seen, on account of what I have said before, as part of a process to strengthen the position of human rights in the Union. I believe we all want to develop the Union in such a way that it can act more effectively on behalf of human rights throughout the world than has been the case thus far. Speaking in the European Parliament, I do not have to single out the reasons why this work is necessary. You know this: reports on violations of human rights are common in the media. I am convinced that our work on behalf of human rights will also have the steadfast support of the people of Europe.
The annual report on human rights replaces the Council’s former annual memorandum on human rights to Parliament. The purpose of the change is to increase and broaden information on the work and priorities of the Council. In this way we are trying to create a forum for deeper and more analytical discussions on the work done by the EU for the issue of human rights.
In this connection I would also like to refer to the EU’s first human rights forum which ended earlier today, and which many of us also attended. The forum witnessed an intense debate, and one that looked to the future, on many of the themes of the annual report. The forum was intended as the start of a more regular and broader dialogue than was the case previously on the priorities and challenges associated with the EU’s policy on human rights. This approach also earned the support of those attending. I am myself also convinced that the forum has a future. Feedback on how the forum might be developed further and improved will obviously be welcome.
But why should the EU publish a report on human rights every year?
Firstly, the Council sees it as a way of strengthening transparency with regard to the EU’s human rights policy. The enhancement of transparency has been one of the main areas of focus during the Finnish Presidency, as you know. When we speak of human rights, transparency is of particular importance. It is necessary to reinforce dialogue and cooperation, as we all have our own role to play in this issue. The annual report covers the period from the beginning of June 1998 up to the end of June 1999. This period was chosen so that the EU June Summit meetings could be included in the report. This is the timeframe that we intend to cover in future annual reports as well.
Secondly, through this annual report we are trying to increase consistency in EU human rights policy by means of this annual report. I myself think that the main challenge to the EU policy on human rights is consistency and credibility in different forums. For the first time, the report combines the work of the EU in different international organisations with our relations to third countries. The report discusses the work in respect of the first and second pillars. In drafting the annual report we realised that no corresponding information had been systematically compiled anywhere before. We also learnt that we really had to establish consistency in the work of the Union beyond the boundaries of the pillars."@en1
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