Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-01-19-Speech-4-236"
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"en.20060119.30.4-236"2
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".
Ladies and gentlemen, the human rights situation in Egypt is highly unusual. Although not even the European Parliament has been able to protest at the fact that the army prevented voters from entering polling stations in a number of towns during the recent election, political stability must be safeguarded in Egypt in order to secure peace in the Middle East. Yet we must ask ourselves whether such political stability should be achieved at the expense of citizens’ fundamental democratic rights.
The situation outlined in the motion for a resolution should serve as a stark warning in this respect. If the Egyptian authorities now not only regard supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood as a threat, but are even attempting to adopt regulations banning secular parties, then attention should be drawn to this fact. This would help to correct the mistaken belief that the approach adopted by the Egyptian courts is not something we view as a major departure from the norm. A situation in which the perpetrator of a questionable offence can be sentenced to several years in prison can only be interpreted in one of two ways. Either the country’s legal system contains highly irregular provisions, or the outcome of the judiciary’s work suggests the involvement of politics. In either case, we cannot remain indifferent. How can we ignore the fact that refugees from Sudan or elsewhere are being turned over to their country of origin, where they face the threat of death? The fact that a peace deal has now been signed between the parties to the conflict in Sudan does not mean that the Darfur conflict has been resolved. The problem of the refugees and their possible repatriation needs to be tackled, in cooperation with the Sudanese and Egyptian Governments, although I am aware of the problems this entails. We should therefore support the work of the UNHCR, and prevent any further incidents that would violate international commitments, and in particular the UN Convention on Refugees. As I see it, it is utterly intolerable that prisoners should be tortured – even though this is the approach chosen by the United States – or that refugees should die when refugee camps are closed down. There can be no question that, pursuant to the Association Agreement, such matters must be investigated in an annual report, and I trust that this will happen. I am therefore in favour of the resolution."@en1
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