Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-06-07-Speech-2-015"
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"en.20050607.5.2-015"2
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"Mr President, terrorism is an amorphous and multifaceted phenomenon which has hit Europe hard and which, unfortunately, will continue to pose a major threat to our democracies if we fail to reach a wide-ranging consensus in order to fight it, if there is not a firm commitment to cooperation between us and if we do not adopt an overarching strategy to eradicate it.
There is also a great deal to be done as regards prevention. We must not let ourselves be fooled by the excuses that terrorists use to justify the unjustifiable. Nevertheless they do relate to problems that often genuinely exist and need to be addressed and that represent a breeding ground for people driven to despair and therefore susceptible to terrorist lunacy. Prevention also involves educating people to the danger of certain statements, and requires us to convey the importance of democracy as regards tolerant debate and respect for the opinions of others.
We must also have the capacity to react appropriately when the worst happens. In such cases, solidarity must be the order of the day: specific political solidarity that marshals all our resources and energy both to provide assistance and to crack down on such acts.
We need to think still more about the victims of terrorism. They need to be involved in the process not only so that we might respond to their concerns but also so that we might demonstrate to them that efforts are being made to ensure that such disasters never happen again.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, our greatest weapon in the face of barbaric acts is our passionate commitment to freedom and democracy, underpinned by human rights. Once again, if we are proactive and unanimous we can defeat those whose dream is to destroy the ideals at the heart of Europe.
It is not enough to react, we need to anticipate and be ahead of the game. Above all, terrorism must be unanimously condemned at a political level, and in order to do that, Europe must equip itself with effective means to do so.
I am therefore delighted with the five reports that we are to vote upon today, as each of them sets out very specific actions against this blight on our world, and I feel reassured by the conviction that I share with Mrs Diéz González, Mr Mayor Oreja, Mr Lambridinis and Mr Borghezio. I hope that these reports will be adopted, if not unanimously - which would be ideal - then at least by a very substantial majority.
Exchanges of information have a key part to play in preventing the menace of terrorism and in effectively combating major crime. However, if such exchanges of information are to be truly effective, we must, as a matter of urgency, impose some order and coherence on the controls already in force and check, by means of a thorough assessment, that they offer real added value. We must avoid sacrificing security on the altar of efficiency, while at the same time not letting efficiency be undermined by bland platitudes.
Let there be no mistake about this: when it comes to the war on terror, we have nothing to fear from waging that war democratically and with determination while respecting the law. The danger lies in not reacting at all. To that extent, I believe that the proposal for a Council decision is helpful, because it strengthens vertical cooperation by involving Europol and Eurojust, and provides for analysis. The Swedish proposal is helpful because it provides for swift bilateral exchanges as part of horizontal cooperation between the services in the Member States. To my mind, these proposals complement one another.
The amendments adopted in committee serve to make these measures more effective, in particular by providing for information to be available on previous convictions, by facilitating spontaneous exchanges of useful information, by setting deadlines for the exchange of information, by providing for an obligation to justify any refusal to supply information, by providing for an annual report to be presented to Parliament and by giving the Court of Justice the power of interpretation. Furthermore, we are proposing for the first time that there should be a coherent set of controls that establishes common standards of data protection under the third pillar equivalent to those under the first pillar, in particular by creating a new joint supervisory body. In this way it will finally be possible to convey to the police in very simple and specific terms, possibly by means of a code, what amounts to good practice. This will allow objections which are very often used to justify inaction to be set aside.
Although we are simply being asked for our opinion, we are taking the initiative by formulating precise proposals. If the vote is largely in favour, as was the case in committee, it will be impossible for the Council and the Commission to turn a deaf ear and to ignore proposals that I believe to be well balanced. We have a very important political role to play here, and I am convinced that Mr Frattini and Mr de Vries will heed what we say and convey our views.
We also need to react as a matter of urgency to other vitally important dossiers, such as the European register of convictions and the fight against the financing of terrorism, because terrorism is dependent upon money. Hence the vital importance of regulations to prevent money laundering and identify the holders of bank accounts financing major crime.
Ladies and gentlemen, as I have said, terrorism has many facets. The most important threat we face today is the violence committed by the amorphous terrorist groupings that wrongly claim the right to invoke Islam. There are also other threats, however. In waging the war on terror, we must make sure to identify our various targets properly. We need to be aware of the links between terrorism and major crime. We also need to set up an early warning system by strengthening cooperation between information services and by providing better protection for locations most at risk."@en1
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