Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-03-14-Speech-3-381"
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"en.20070314.26.3-381"2
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"Mr President, I should like first of all to say that I have the special honour of also speaking on behalf of my honourable friend Mrs Rothe, who is absent this evening. I wish to congratulate Commissioner Mandelson on his statement, my honourable friend Mr Demetriou on his initiative and all my honourable friends from all the political parties who played a decisive part in putting this important humanitarian issue, the issue of the missing persons from the tragedy in Cyprus, on the agenda.
I believe that, in the vote tomorrow, all the members, regardless of their political group, will willingly attend to vote in favour of the motion for a resolution, an act of confirmation of the defence of humanitarian principles and of the deep humanitarian problem of the missing persons in Cyprus.
In 1981 the Committee on Missing Persons was set up under the aegis of the UN Secretary General. In 1995 we had the first resolution here in Parliament, an important step in raising the awareness of the European public and international public opinion. In May 2001, the European Court of Human Rights returned its decision on the appeal by the Republic of Cyprus against the state of Turkey. In its decision – and I think it is in the interests of all of us to study it – it confirmed the clear infringements of fundamental human rights and of the European Convention on Human Rights by Turkey, specifically of Article 2 on the right to life, of Article 3 on the right to freedom and security and of Article 4 on the right not to be maltreated. Despite all this, it is now 2007 and, unfortunately, very few results have ensued from the investigation of this problem.
I believe that, as the European Union and, more importantly, as the European Parliament, we have at the very least a humanitarian responsibility to defend the fundamental – in Mr Mandelson's words – right of the families of the missing persons to know the fate of their relatives and we must express this responsibility tomorrow in the most absolute terms.
I think it is especially important for the European Parliament to remember everyone's obligations, because the missing persons are a humanitarian problem which concerns the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots, it concerns Greeks and Turks. It is the outcome of tragic events in Cyprus in the 1960s, from 1964 onwards following the clashes between the two communities and, of course, it is the outcome of the Turkish invasion in 1974.
I believe, as Mr Mandelson quite rightly said, that activating the Committee on Missing Persons is a very important step, just as the funding of its operation on the part of the European Commission is an important step. I should like to point out here that the Member States also have an obligation to contribute funds for the operation of this committee. I welcome the fact that Mr Mandelson backs the need for funding and has reconfirmed the European Commission's willingness to fund its operation.
I believe that, with this debate today, not only are we activating the historic memory, but also, more importantly, we are helping the two communities in Cyprus, the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots, to become closer. That is why I think that our debate may form a bridge for the creation of confidence-building measures leading to reconciliation and the reunification of the two communities within the framework of a united Republic of Cyprus within the European Union. I also believe that all of us here, with the humanitarian sensitivity for which we are known, will continue to demonstrate our interest and, as the motion for a resolution states, it is very important for the European Parliament to contribute to developments or, if you like, to monitor them through the periodic reports which the committee must submit."@en1
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