Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-09-14-Speech-2-023"
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"en.20040914.3.2-023"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, it is sad to see how little the various debates held here in this Parliament over recent years on the state of democracy in Belarus have changed. I would, however, like to take this opportunity to assess the situation in terms of our relations and to consider the prospects for improving them in the future, within the framework of a European neighbourhood policy.
A key element of our policy with regard to that country is support for civil society and for the process of democratisation. In recent years, however, the authorities of that country have refused to apply tax exemption to European Union debt, which undoubtedly hinders the entry of that aid and, therefore, its use and access to it by Belarusian society.
The authorities of that country are currently registering all the free external aid projects, and in practice this is allowing them to reject any international assistance that they believe goes against their partisan interests.
So how can we improve our relations with that country in these circumstances? We have developed a European neighbourhood policy in order to continue strengthening our relations with our neighbours, including Belarus.
By means of this policy we believe we will be able to consolidate our efforts to support democratic development in Belarus.
I would like to make it clear that if fundamental political and economic reforms are carried out, and as soon as they are carried out, Belarus will be able to participate fully in the European neighbourhood policy, with all the advantages that would come with it. Nevertheless, under current circumstances, the minimum conditions required are not in place and we cannot therefore go ahead with this policy in relation to Belarus.
The first important milestone for Belarus will be the parliamentary elections and the referendum scheduled for October. The Union has committed itself to supporting democratic parliamentary elections in the autumn, in coordination with the Office for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and with the Council of Europe. We wish, however, to place the emphasis on the legal framework for the elections, as well as freedom for the media and the conditions under which the campaigns of the different political parties must be carried out.
The Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the OSCE has established a mission of electoral observers for the parliamentary elections. The Union will participate by supporting the election observers and at the same time we will remain in contact with the democratic forces. I must, however, point out that we are very concerned about the referendum called on the modification of the constitution and the repeal of the current limit on presidential mandates.
We have informed the authorities of that country on several occasions of the consequences that referendum would have in terms of our relations if circumstances do not change.
The conclusions of the General Affairs and External Relations Council approved yesterday are crystal-clear on this issue.
In this regard, the Commission once again wishes to send a clear message to the people of Belarus, letting them know that the Union is not forgetting them. The important thing is that people – in particular those who are fighting for democratic change – do not feel they have no support. Now more than ever it is essential that we continue our work supporting civil society and the democratic forces in that country. Moreover, we have committed ourselves to doing so.
I would like to point out briefly that, following its independence in 1991, bilateral relations with Belarus began to move forward satisfactorily towards the adoption of an association and cooperation agreement and a provisional commercial agreement. Nevertheless, all these negotiations became paralysed as a result of the deterioration of the internal political situation in Belarus in 1996, and regrettably they have not improved since then.
I believe that Parliament’s resolution expresses similar causes for concern in Belarus and I am naturally interested in hearing the honourable Members’ opinions about the current evolution of our relations and in particular in considering how we can improve our support, our backing for the democratisation of the country, and therefore our support and backing for Belarusian democratic forces in such a difficult situation.
Nevertheless, since 2002, the European Union has been trying hard to bring the issue back to the fore, to try to overcome the situation of deadlock, taking a points-of-reference approach with a view simply to improving our political relations with that country gradually.
So far, however, the continuous efforts of the Union, the talks, have not yielded any tangible results. Nevertheless, the Union is still prepared to continue making progress provided that there is some movement on the part of the authorities of that country.
We must also remember that, following the latest enlargement, Belarus has become a direct neighbour – we have shared borders – and, in this regard, it is all the more important to us that it becomes a democratic, stable and prosperous country.
We believe that our proximity can and must manifest itself in the long term through close cooperation and exchange in fields of mutual interest, such as trade, justice, home affairs, transport, energy and the environment. All of this requires fundamental political reforms in that country, however.
I would like to say once again that the European Union is deeply concerned about recent developments in Belarus, where all indications are that the situation is deteriorating in terms of respect for the Rule of Law, democracy and human rights, and where we are still seeing how policies relating to independent media – some of which have been closed down – the actions of the government and the forces supporting it with regard to political opposition forces and the situation of independent social organisations and higher education establishments are becoming increasingly difficult.
In this regard, I must point out that we are also following the debate taking place in the Council of Europe, here in Strasbourg, on the people who have disappeared in Belarus, with the greatest of interest.
In accordance with the information presented by the European trade union confederations, the Commission has also begun an investigation into alleged violations of freedom of association and of the right to collective negotiation within the framework of the Regulation on the system of generalised preferences. Depending on the conclusions of this investigation, the Union will have to reconsider Belarus’s future access to the benefits of the system of generalised preferences."@en1
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