Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-05-12-Speech-4-170"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20050512.24.4-170"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spoken text |
".
Mr President, the presidential elections held in Togo on 24 April of this year gave rise to bitter controversy, with accusations of vote-rigging and violence. The Commission has associated itself with strong condemnations of the riots and violence against civilians that followed the announcement of the provisional results and which left a reported number of 50 dead and 300 injured. The violence and the brutal repression by military forces also caused 23 000 Togolese to take refuge in neighbouring Benin and Ghana.
Given the very tight electoral timetable, under which elections had to take place within 60 days of President Eyadema’s death, the European Union could not send an electoral observation mission that would have met our usual standards of observation. The European Union abstained from any pronouncement on the fairness and transparency of the vote. Admittedly, many problems arose during the preparation of the elections, and irregularities were reported by the Ecowas electoral observation mission on election day.
Today, we believe that the utmost priority is the re-establishment of calm and stability and the prevention of any further violence. In order to achieve this, we attach paramount importance to the fulfilment of the 22 commitments undertaken by the Government as a result of the consultations held under Article 96 of the Cotonou Agreement. These commitments include respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms, namely press and media freedom, as well as a true political dialogue with all political protagonists in Togo, with a view to preparing the next legislative elections.
We believe that the effective implementation of the 22 commitments, with close scrutiny from the European Union, as well as from the international community, will allow the country to progress towards national reconciliation and democratic development.
In conclusion, I would like to assure you and Mr Smith that we are not just watching, but we have decided that the conditions for the redemption of cooperation established by the Council decision of 14 November 2004 remain valid. Such a resumption can only take place in the context of the fulfilment of the 22 commitments I just referred to. More specifically, full resumption will not be possible until free, fair and transparent legislative elections, held in an electoral framework accepted by all parties, have taken place. The Commission is ready to give its support to the holding of such elections, including the sending of a European Union electoral observation mission."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples