Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-09-26-Speech-3-229"
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".
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, with yesterday’s adoption by the United Nations Security Council of Resolution 1778/2007 on the deployment of an international force in the eastern part of Chad and in the north-east of the Central African Republic the door is now open for the Council of the European Union to give its approval, within the next few days, to an ESDP operation in these countries. This is clearly a major development and I believe it is to be welcomed. The regions targeted by the operation are currently in a state of general instability and insecurity that is affecting hundreds of thousands of civilians, who are forced to live in conditions of extreme vulnerability. As you know, this situation cannot solely be explained by the knock-on effect that the Darfur crisis is having on Chad and the Central African Republic. There are also endogenous reasons, peculiar to these two countries, especially in the case of Chad.
Stability in these areas of Chad and the Central African Republic can only be assured if international action, and especially that taken by the European Union, incorporates a number of factors. These include, firstly, the quality of the military and police presence in Chad and in the CAR, secondly the adoption of an approach that is not exclusively based on security but also includes the provision of aid and the establishment of political structures, and finally the capacity to confine and contain any interference by Sudan and the Darfur region in Chad and the Central African Republic.
Let me deal with the first point: this is an area that comes under the second pillar. Members of the Council have expressed their views on this matter and doubtless will have more to say in the days ahead. One important element that has to be taken into account in the deployment of such a European protection force is obviously the need to protect the humanitarian zone. This is why my staff at ECHO have been working closely with the Council’s military planners with a view to ensuring that the relevant mandates are respected and that there is a high level of cooperation between the military and the humanitarian agencies. We have in particular insisted that the liaison officers of the European protection force should be present on the ground in order to ensure close links and a permanent exchange of information with the humanitarian organisations.
I will now move on to the second point. The aid measures provided by the Commission cover three aspects. The first comprises a security backup for the Chadian police operation, under the direction of the United Nations. This essentially constitutes funding for the training of 800 Chadian police officers who will be responsible for maintaining order in the camps that have been set up for refugees and displaced persons. It is crucial that this police action is exemplary. It is also very important that it is well received by the local people. For this purpose, funding to the amount of some EUR 10 million is to be provided by the stability instrument before the end of 2007.
Now I will turn to the humanitarian measures. In 2007 the Commission allocated EUR 30.5 million for emergency humanitarian aid and for multisectoral aid programmes designed to help the refugees and internally displaced populations as well as the host communities in Chad. The Central African Republic received EUR 8 million in aid and similar amounts have been allocated for 2008.
The third element concerns reintegration and rehabilitation. Additional funding from the 9th European Development Fund of about EUR 13.1 million are to be mobilised in the short term for Chad and the Central African Republic. The programme is intended as a continuation of ECHO’s activities in pursuing a strategy for rehabilitation and the transition to development.
Ladies and gentlemen, these aid measures are necessary but must at the same time be linked to actions involving the political process. If lasting stability is to be assured, the actions being taken at international and European level need to be supplemented by various other activities associated with the restoration of the rule of law, the revival of economic governance, the reform of the legal and security systems, and the pursuit of political dialogue between the government and the opposition parties. It goes without saying that this is an important element, especially in view of the 2009 elections.
The Commission will continue to promote this global approach in Chad and in the Central African Republic. By the same token the Commission is fully active in trying to resolve the Darfur conflict, not only by providing humanitarian aid and help for reconstruction but also by lending support to the process of negotiation and mediation, in which we are obviously very much involved. In this regard I recently informed the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr Ban Ki-moon, and the Chairman of the African Union Commission, Mr Konaré, that the Commission would be contributing to the Darfur Trust Fund in support of the negotiations. Moreover, the Commission is also financing initiatives aimed at ensuring that Darfurian society is involved in and committed to the process of conflict resolution."@en1
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