Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-09-25-Speech-4-116"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"2003-09-25"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:The European Union and the campaign against torture2
dcterms:Language	"en"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.20030925.9.4-116"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2003-09-25-Speech-4-1172
lpv:speaker	lp:Koldo Gorostiaga Atxalandabaso2
lpv:spoken text	"Mr President, torture in third countries can comfortably be condemned in this House – the Taliban's treatment of women is the classic example of that. However, nobody can deny that the real test would be to match our rhetoric with concrete acts to deal with the endless stream of torture in one of the Member States – the Kingdom of Spain. During the last four years, I have raised this issue several times and nobody in this House has reacted to support my complaints. Particularly regrettable was the behaviour of our former President, Mrs Fontaine, firstly in January 2001, when I asked for a statement against the pardon of 15 police torturers who had already been sentenced in Spain. The President ordered that the speaker be cut off. That happened twice in two different sittings of this House during January 2001. And secondly, in December 2001, when I brandished a poster photograph of a tortured woman, the President reacted in the same way. Commissioner, we have to make sure that the European Union will speak up and act to answer any complaint on torture. It is up to the Commission to make sure that Member States comply with European law to win credibility from European citizens. Political realism has led the European institutions to the conclusion that it is not appropriate at this stage to do anything that might endanger the political architecture of the European Union. However, I am convinced that the majority of Europeans do not share this tolerance towards torture. We ought not to pretend that we are doing something serious to oppose torture so long as we do not set up a more ambitious compromise, particularly denouncing by name those responsible for torture. Unfortunately, to that extent, nothing has changed in the European Union despite a few courageous reports. We await proposals from the Commission seeking to put in place a sensible piece of legislation to reinforce the point that torture cannot under any circumstances be tolerated. Political and legal actions must be taken soon, because finding solutions to torture is a matter of urgency. I very much support the emphasis of the Commission statement, though I generally believe that many people in the Basque country would consider that it does not go far enough to meet their concerns."@en1
lpv:spokenAs	unknown; Euskal Herritarrok (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3 member; EMPL (2002-01-17--2004-07-19)3 substitute; Committee on Development and Cooperation (2003-03-12--2004-07-19)3 member; Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities (2002-01-17--2004-07-19)3 member; NA (1999-07-21--2004-07-19)3 member; Delegation for relations with the countries of Central America and Mexico (2002-02-07--2004-07-19)3
lpv:unclassifiedMetadata	"Gorostiaga Atxalandabaso (NI )."1

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