Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-12-19-Speech-4-155"
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"en.20021219.9.4-155"2
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"Madam President, things did indeed get off to a promising start. In September an official delegation from the Dalai Lama visited China's leaders. In October, the nun Ngawang Sangdrol was released after decades of imprisonment, following massive international protests, including those from the European Parliament itself. A considerable number of Members of this House had repeatedly nominated her for the Sakharov Prize.
Did these welcome steps on the part of the Chinese amount merely to political manoeuvring in the run-up to their President's visit to the USA? Will the path to constructive dialogue now peter out again in the aftermath of the Communist party conference and the far-reaching changes in personnel brought about by it? Are the hardliners getting the upper hand?
We have heard some alarming reports recently. At the beginning of December, as other Members have mentioned, two Tibetans were sentenced to death by the Kardze People's Court after a trial so rushed that doubt must be cast on its legality. They were accused of owning illegal weapons, of separatism and of taking part in an attack using explosives carried out in Chengdu in April.
One of those involved is the Tibetan Tulku Tenzin Delek, who has a death sentence hanging over him with a two-year reprieve. He has been committed to preserving Tibetan culture, language and religion for decades. He founded new monasteries and championed the social well-being of the public. His colleague Lobsang Dhondup also faces a death penalty, without reprieve.
It is evident that neither of the two defendants received a fair trial. International standards were breached. For example, Tenzin Delek spent eight months in solitary confinement without any contact with his family or with lawyers, which is clearly in violation of the UN's minimum standards for the treatment of prisoners. The authorities demanded the payment of bail equivalent to EUR 120 000 before a proper trial could be initiated. His students were arrested when they tried to raise the money.
This is a flagrant violation of international human rights. It is imperative for the Chinese authorities to maintain legal standards. However necessary the war on terrorism may be, and however much we may all support it, it cannot be waged without respect for the law and for human rights. It is totally unacceptable for the peaceful struggle to practice Tibetan religion and culture to be treated as an act of terrorism.
On behalf of the Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) and the European Democrats, I call on the Commission immediately to raise these unfair verdicts under the dialogue on human rights with the Chinese. We must prevent unlawful sentences from being executed and the grant of financial aid must be made dependent on improvements in the area of human rights.
Ladies and gentlemen, I urge you to stir your Member States' embassies in Beijing into action without delay, so that these defendants can be given a fair trial. The first step must be to lift the death sentence.
Lastly, as Chairman of Parliament's Tibet Intergroup, I would like to express my hope that the forces of reason will prevail in China and that our worldwide campaign for human rights and the rule of law will succeed."@en1
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