Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-01-17-Speech-3-175"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20010117.5.3-175"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, it is more than 50 years since we adopted the Declaration of Human Rights, but we probably need to ask ourselves whether the human rights situation has in actual fact improved. That is not an easy question to answer, but we know more today than we once did, thanks partly to the many NGOs and journalists who constantly report on human rights violations around the world, and knowledge is a prerequisite for action. But there is, in fact, an obligation to act upon information, so that not to do anything is to let down those whose rights are being violated, and in this area the EU has an independent responsibility. As many speakers have mentioned, the EU has quite a high profile in the area of human rights, and that is both a good and a bad thing. It is crucial that we are consistent and specific. In relation to Central and Eastern European countries, we have had success with our policy, which can probably best be characterised as an iron fist in a velvet glove.
However, that is not enough, for human rights violations do not, of course, stop at Europe’s borders. Therefore, it is also gratifying that we have focused on human rights in connection with the new ACP-EU partnership agreements. However, we must be certain that we are in a position to follow through and take action if it proves that human rights are being violated. If we have to introduce sanctions in Central and Eastern Europe, then everyone will be affected. The situation of the developing countries is quite different in this respect. If we are obliged to introduce sanctions, which more often than not will only affect the poor sector of the population, we therefore need, where developing countries are concerned, to establish a special strategy with regard to sanctions so that we do not only hit those we really wanted to help, as well as those who have suffered in the past.
This constitutes a very large task for the EU as a whole and also for the European Parliament. We must be clear which sanctions are to be imposed. However, it is of course crucial for us to work with human rights more generally so that we can obtain some comparable figures, for Parliament is inclined to intervene as soon as we hear that a human right is being violated somewhere or other. When we go out into the world, we must try to be very specific and see what the human rights situation is like in the countries concerned. We can organise meetings with human rights activists and human rights organisations in the area and we can arrange for the final report to deal with human rights issues. I should like, in conclusion, to say that those areas dealt with in the resolution are important, but that they are not, of course, the only areas demanding our attention. That is why I have touched upon a number of other areas today."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples