Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-07-09-Speech-3-361"
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"en.20080709.35.3-361"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, Madam Vice-President, Mrs Morgantini, ladies and gentlemen, you have raised the subjects of Israel’s imprisonment and administrative detention of Palestinians, including minors, and of their treatment in the occupied territories and in Israel.
With regard to invocation of the instruments of international law, as mentioned by Mrs Morgantini, the Council maintains its position, that international law is to be defended and developed, as stipulated in the European Security Strategy adopted by the Council in December 2003.
I would emphasise that the Presidency, on behalf of the European Union, is very pleased about the signature of the exchange agreement between Israel and Hezbollah, which we learned of on Monday. This agreement provides for the return of the bodies of Hezbollah fighters and the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the return of the bodies of the Israeli soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, captured in 2006.
We hope that this exchange will be effected as agreed, but this issue also reveals, for the future, just how complex the ‘prisoners’ issue in the Middle East is, and how important it is to resolve it.
The Council points out that the political process, as defined in the road map, represents the only means of reaching a solution negotiated between the parties, and, as I have indicated and on the terms that I have indicated, the coexistence of two states.
The Council believes that penal policies and practices must, in all circumstances, respect the fundamental principles of human rights as enshrined in international law, in particular in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
All detention that could be described as arbitrary should be proscribed, particularly in view of the fact that the person detained has not been advised of the charges against him. The principle of the right to a fair and public trial by an impartial and independent court is fundamental in a state governed by the rule of law, and we note that special courts may be put in place only in very limited and clearly defined cases.
It is also essential to respect the obligation to treat detained persons properly and, of course, torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners must be strictly prohibited and prevented.
The Council recognises that the human rights situation in the Middle East is a matter of concern. Nevertheless, the Council is very pleased that the dialogue between the European Union and Israel is addressing all these issues, including the situation in the Palestinian territories. The human rights issue is a topic that continues to be discussed at all levels on an ongoing basis in political contacts between the EU and Israel.
Thus in its declaration of 16 June 2008, published at the end of the EU-Israel Association Council, the European Union called for the informal group discussing the human rights issue to be transformed into a standing subcommittee.
The Council is aware of the facts set out by honourable Members in Parliament, especially the Vice-President, and raised in particular in the last report by Mr John Dugard, special United Nations rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territories, and by various non-governmental organisations.
The Council has had the opportunity to register its concern, and has called several times for Palestinian prisoners to be released in greater numbers. Moreover, it reaffirms its position that the political process begun in Annapolis in November 2007, which must be accompanied by measures of trust on the ground, constitutes the only means of reaching a solution negotiated between the parties, based on the coexistence of two states, namely an independent Palestinian state that is democratic and viable, living peacefully alongside an Israel with secure, recognised borders.
In this context, and with a view to rebuilding trust between the parties and involving the civil populations in the current political process, the Council invites Israel to make significant gestures, in particular by releasing, as a priority, the Palestinian children, women and elected representatives who are in prison or in administrative detention."@en1
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