Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-10-26-Speech-3-328"
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"en.20051026.22.3-328"2
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Madam President, the report that Mrs Jäätteenmäki has presented to your House is an outstanding one. Its title – ‘The Barcelona process revisited’ – may at first sight appear rather surprising, but perhaps I may interpret it as meaning that its concern is with the strengthening and deepening of partnership between Europe and the other Mediterranean states, something that is quite clearly expressed in the motion for a resolution.
This presupposes the extension and development of the political and security policy aspects of the partnership. It is because better use needs to be made of the political framework that I regard Parliament’s meetings in conjunction with Euromed as particularly important, but meetings of the Council of Ministers and meeting in troika format can also help promote further development.
Secondly, it is essential that we consider the vital importance of education, not least in terms of its impact on society. In the Mediterranean countries, one-third of the population is under 15 years of age, and that means that we have to focus especially on education. The UNDP report on human development showed that education, and equal status for women in particular, will help drive development forward.
I have therefore made a special priority of the eradication of illiteracy, bearing in mind the UN millennium statement of intent that this should be done by 2015. I do hope that we will accomplish that. I would like to see girls and boys get the same opportunity to be enrolled at the same schools and to receive the same education. I would also like to see priority given to special support measures for women. We plan a scholarship programme for this purpose, which will provide, in particular, postgraduate grants for women, with the object of accelerating development in this area.
I also regard the problems surrounding migration as quite central among social issues. Today, for example, I welcomed Morocco’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Mr Taieb Fassi Fihri, and we did of course discuss current events in Ceuta and Melilla, to which we cannot be indifferent. We have to work together to arrive at solutions – solutions not only for the European Union as a whole in its relations with the Mediterranean in general, but also for the sub-Saharan states and Africa. While we must, of course, attempt to cut off people-smuggling, so that people do not become the victims of this terrible trade, we must also create additional development opportunities for these countries so that migratory movements of this kind do not occur.
While refugees must be treated in accordance with the Convention and with absolute respect for their human rights, the flood of illegal refugees must be stemmed, and this is certainly one of the key topics for the Barcelona Summit.
On the economic front, we have done much to ensure normal trade and a free trade zone by 2010, but much more remains to be done about services and agricultural trade, and South-South trade, also known as the Agadir process, must be further developed. Other vital topics include transport, energy, and the environment. There will be a conference on transport in December in Marrakesh; on the energy front, more and more sub-regional networks need to be developed. As regards the environment, the cleanliness of the Mediterranean should be guaranteed as far as possible.
Mrs Jäätteemäki quite rightly puts particular emphasis on cultural cooperation, to which we, too, want to give greater attention in future.
It is of course a matter of common knowledge that, although the Barcelona process offers the chance to get Israel and Palestine sitting around the same table, that same process is itself constantly overshadowed by the peace process in the Middle East, and so it is essential that we should make headway here. I have Mr Wolfensohn, the quartet envoy, who has done really good work here and whom we support entirely, in mind when I say that.
The tenth anniversary of the Barcelona process is not just an opportunity to appreciate past successes, which there have been, even though not everything we wanted to achieve has been; it is also particularly necessary that we should look forward, building on the foundations laid by these successes and, with determination and political courage, making full use of the potential of this cooperation for the future.
I agree with Mrs Jäätteenmäki when she says that it goes without saying that the Barcelona process will continue to be needed in the future. It is for that reason that I attach particular importance to the major summit meeting to be held in Barcelona at the end of November, at which Heads of State and Government will, for the first time, be able to have their say on this subject.
The Commission has, at my suggestion, produced a communication of its own, to which I attach particular significance in view of the fact that it takes up the very same points that all of us in this House – for I have heard these same things from you – regard as especially relevant. There are three main ones, to which I would add culture.
First among these points is political reform, with, above all, the promotion of human rights, democracy and good governance, to which I shall return later. Second comes education and training; Mrs Jäätteenmäki is quite right to say that this is something on which we need to carry on working, an area in which we need to become stronger. This is a very particular concern of mine and I intend to see that something is done about it.
The third area is that of economic development. It is in this area that we have achieved perhaps the most successes to date, but it is also one in which we need to make further progress. I would like to come back to that and discuss it in detail.
There is of course more work for us to do in relation to culture, with the Anna Lindh Foundation, dialogue between civilisations and cultures, and this network’s potential for extension, being enormously important. The Commission is of course available to assist in this.
Let me start by considering political reform, democracy and human rights, areas in which we cannot stand aloof, but must endeavour to support reform from outside. We cannot, of course, impose them; rather, we need to offer firm support and the possibility of supporting measures. That means that it is very important that the Neighbourhood Policy should build on the Barcelona process in making the right instruments available. Over recent weeks, I have visited many of these Mediterranean countries – Tunisia, Jordan and Lebanon among them – and see with what efficiency we can work with these instruments, even when, as is the case in these countries, human rights issues are addressed under different headings.
We have thought up something special in order to promote human rights, the plan being that we will – we expect from next year onwards, but certainly starting in 2007 – be making available complementary assistance in the form of a ‘Democracy Facility’. What that means is that the countries that are making particularly good progress with reform will, by way of support, receive at least an extra 10% on top of the funds that they already receive. I hope that this will give these countries an incentive to press on with still greater dedication and encourage others, which are currently dragging their heels, to do likewise."@en1
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