Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-11-14-Speech-1-120"
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"en.20051114.15.1-120"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I should like to thank those who have spoken and to say that everyone here is in agreement with a principle which I personally underlined in my introduction.
I should be very happy if the European Constitution had already come into force, because it gives the European Commission wider powers than those it currently possesses. When someone here referred to the powers of national courts, they may have imagined that I have powers identical to those of a public prosecutor or examining magistrate in one of the Member States. However, there is no comparison between the power of a national judge and that of the European Commission. We may not like it, but those are the rules of the Treaties and, therefore, when we talk of an ‘investigation’ we need to use the word in its legal sense and, above all, within the meaning defined in the Treaties.
To sum up: I intend to use all powers of political investigation, because these are permitted under the Treaties. We are allowed to ask the question, but if a Member State replies that it has never had clandestine jails in its territory, I shall need to have proof, as in the case of Abu Ghraib – photographs, evidence and testimonies. At present, we do not have these items. I am not saying we may not have them in future, but I do not have the authority to summon anyone, or to order the interrogation of someone who refuses to testify, because these powers are vested in other bodies.
I am talking, therefore, about a political investigation, an action aimed at obtaining information and collecting evidence, where it exists. Important information may also be obtained from Members of Parliament, of course, because these are political actions. They are not legal actions; they are actions which, if the allegations are proven, could lead to political sanctions. That is what complying with the rules means – and it is something I have always done, even when I may not have liked it. In this particular case, I do not like having limited powers, but these are the powers vested in me under the Treaties, and they are the political powers of investigation which I intend to use.
There is unanimity on the basic principle of the European Union, namely total respect for the life and dignity of every individual. Therefore, everyone here in Parliament agrees with the view that, if the allegations prove to be true, we shall be faced – as I have already said, but it is worth repeating – with a serious breach of the Treaty on European Union, a violation which, if it were confirmed and proven, could lead, as you all know, to the application of serious political sanctions against a Member State of the European Union.
That is only the start, however, because it is obvious that, in addition to the serious violation – and I have drawn attention to Article 7 of the Treaty – there is also a second consideration: if these allegations proved to be true, they would constitute criminal activity. Someone mentioned this fact, a large number of you emphasised it and I am fully in agreement. It is therefore clear that the national legislatures of the Member States have the duty to investigate situations of this type.
In Italy, as everyone is aware, an investigation is in progress into certain serious allegations of unlawful acts committed in Italy by CIA agents, which, if proven, would constitute a serious crime.
Ladies and gentlemen, the problem is that legal means must be used if they give us every opportunity to achieve the result that we, both Commission and Parliament, are seeking. Let us therefore look at what actions the Commission has taken, is taking and will take in the future. Many of you asked this question and I may have failed to cover this point adequately in my introduction.
I believe the most appropriate way to describe it would be as a political action involving continuous requests to Member States and accession candidates. I am referring to possible actions such as debate and discussion with NGOs, which obviously have information they supplied to the media and which they could certainly provide to the Commission as well; also dialogue with other institutions that hold further items of evidence and with bodies able to supply information to the European Commission; and, finally, intense and continuous discussion with the authorities. I refer, in particular, to the United States Congress and Senate, which have decided to conduct investigations, the results of which could be passed on to the European Commission.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am not someone who minces words and I would ask you to forgive what is perhaps an excess of frankness. However, I believe that the indignation we all rightly feel at these serious crimes – these absolutely disgraceful situations – will not suffice to alter the rules of the Treaties.
When some Members refer to an ‘investigation’, they are not just referring to the approach the Commission is intending to adopt – and will adopt – namely to conduct a political enquiry. They are also thinking of inspections, the taking of evidence and the obtaining of documents, even where such documents are not spontaneously volunteered. Even if Parliament voted that the Commission should exercise such investigative powers, it would be unable to do so, because the Treaties do not give it that authority.
When we use the word ‘investigation’, we need to understand what we are talking about. Do we have the power to question the Interior Ministers of the candidate countries and Member States referred to? No, we do not. Do we have the power to obtain classified CIA documents if they are not handed over? No, we do not. Do we have the powers of the Council of Europe? No, we do not have those powers. That would require a change in the Treaties."@en1
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